Palwa chandelier, gold plate & faceted crystals, 1970`s ca, German

Palwa chandelier, 24 Karat gold plated gilt brass frame with 77 faceted crystals, 1970`s ca, German.

This chandelier has been gently cleaned while respecting the vintage patina. It is newly rewired with 4 metres of antique gold silk cable, 6 new brass metal lamp holders, earthed & ready to install. It is possible to install this chandelier in other countries although it may be necessary to purchase different light bulbs suitable to local electricity. It can be used with a dimmer.

Palme chandeliers are known for the quality of the crystals & originality of design. In this case the traditional canopy shaped chandelier is given a Modern twist with octagonal faceted crystals & geometric forms. This Palwa design is a great balance between the Brutalist style of the 70`s with Hollywood Regency glamour & luxury materials.  The gold plated frame has a Brutalist design and is elegantly decorated with quality faceted crystals to beautifully reflect the light.

There are 3 tiers in the composition: 

The main central tier making the canopy and including the 6 lights. This main tier has circular gilt brass cells with large size (6 cm diameter) faceted octagonal crystals inside. It has a sequence of one full circle and two half circles, one facing up and the other facing down. There are 40 octagonal large faceted crystals hanging inside the full circles and in the bottom half circles of the frame. The top half circles of the canopy facing upwards are empty creating movement to the design.

This main central canopy is connected to the column of the frame by 5 horizontal gilt brass tubular arms. This arms are attached to a round gilt brass plate that covers the receiver cylindrical bowl with the lamp holders. There are 5 horizontal lamp holders and 1 at the bottom of the bowl, together with a decorative brass finial .

The smaller tier is at the top of the frame, composed by 3 horizontal arms and 6  circular gilt brass cells with medium size (4 cm diameter) faceted octagonal crystals inside . This upper tier balance the composition to great decorative effect. Above there is a hanger loop where the chain attaches.

Inside and underneath the main large circular gilt brass frame there is the removable bottom gilt brass tier. It is suspended by vertical hooks to the horizontal arms. It repeats & complement to great decorative effect the sequence & design of the other parts of the piece. It is of circular shape, slightly concave and composed by gilt metal cells of 2 sizes: 24 with large size crystals inside (6 cm) and 7 with small size crystals inside ( 3 cm).

The Solid brass chain can be shortened or lengthened if required, and is finished at the top with a gilt brass ceiling cup that can be fitted to the rod up & down with a screw slip ring. A beautiful design detail to note is that this gilt brass cup is covered by another one in crystal. Inside the ceiling cup there is an S hook to secure this chandelier to the ceiling. There is the original vintage maker`s paper label " Palme & Walter" (designers) inside the ceiling cup.

In total there are 77 quality faceted crystals: 64 big, 6 medium & 7 small. All octagonal in shape & faceted & cut to a diamond point. This point comes out from the gilt brass cells creating depth & reflections.

This chandelier takes 6 standard small screw light bulbs E 14 up to 40 Watts each.  The 6 newly replaced  brass lamp holders are earthed. At present fitted and photographed with Candle Clear light bulbs of 25 Watts which are included in the price. 

This vintage chandelier is in very good condition. The 77 crystals are all in excellent condition with no chips or cracks to report and only one or two tiny nibbles in line with age & wear. The frame is in very good condition and sturdy. Two of the original 5 vertical hooks from the bottom tier are missing but this does not affect the stability. The gilt is present on the brass with only some minor rubbing in a few small areas in line with age. The crystal ceiling cup has a tiny chip by the hole, hardly seen as it is covered by the brass slip ring & washer.

Packing is offered free of charge. We take special professional care while packing. For safe transport, the chandelier would be wrapped in a layer of bubble wrap, foam & soft card. The frame would easily fit into a box with loose fill packing peanuts ideal for safe posting.

Additional dimensions:

The Height of only the frame without the chain is 38 cm.

The Diameter of each large crystal is: 6 cm.

The Diameter of each medium crystal is: 4 cm.

The Diameter of each small crystal is: 3 cm.

Palwa Lighting History

Palwa is a lighting company from Germany that after nearly 80 years still exists today. Palwa has a historical worldwide reputation as a manufacturer of beautiful light fittings with their own in-house design department and craftsmen who produce special one-off designs. For this reason their vintage pieces by Palme & Walter are becoming very rare to find and sought after. Check out the company`s website: www.palwa.com.