Temde Copper Pendant Lamp

Materials: Round folded copper slats lampshade. Some metal parts. Porcelain E27 lamp socket.

Cord: 120 cm / 47.24”

Height: 22 cm / 8.66”

Width: ∅ 33 cm / 12.99”

Electricity: 1 bulb E27, 1 x 150 watt maximum, 110/220 volt.
Any type of light bulb can be used, not a specific one preferred.

Period: 1970s – Mid-Century Modern.

Designer: H. Zender.

Manufacturer: Theodor Müller & Co. Temde-Werk, Detmold, Germany, Switzerland.

Other versions: This Temde copper pendant lamp exists in several sizes. Also wall lamps were made. Made in brass, copper and white painted metal. This pendant lamp is model 810, as labelled.

Almost always said that it is a design by Thorsten Orrling. But according to the iF Design Awards website it is a design of H. Zender. And it is much more logical. It received an iF Design award in 1971. Unfortunately no information can be found about the designer. Do you have an idea? Please let us know through the contact form and help improve the websites exactitude.

A reversed version was made by Coronel Elektro, you can find it over here, on Vintageinfo.

Temde-Leuchten

Temde-Leuchten and Temde AG was a German-Swiss manufacturer of lighting fixtures, headquartered in Detmold (North Rhine-Westphalia) and subsidiary in Sevelen, in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.

Fritz Müller (1889-1964), son of a furniture maker from Lipperland founded the company in 1911 under the name Temde, abbreviated by Theodor Müller, father of the company founder.

In the first years, only wooden lamps were produced. In addition to residential lighting, Temde also produced special products for public facilities and commercial establishments, such as hotels, restaurants, public places and churches. 

Since the 1930s, Temde AG has also been producing lighting elements made of modern materials such as chrome and glass, but wood remained the main material.

In the post-war period, the production of wood-based materials became the basis for new lighting concepts. The use of pressed wood made it possible to build entirely new collections.

Although Fritz Müller expanded the operational infrastructure and his company offered 250 basic models in the mid-1950’s, Temde did not profit so much from the general economic boom of the 1950s. 

In the 1970s, the metal, glass and plastic materials became more and more important.

Temde filed for bankruptcy in 1986. The Swiss part, Temde AG was deleted from Switzerland’s commercial register in 2000.

Some designers that worked for the company are: Charles Keller, Max Rutz, Wilhelm Vest, H. Zehnder, Eva Renée Nele and many others.