History of Candlemaking

Tallow Candles

• Beginning door to door with use of animal fat and dipping to form candles, molds were introduced in 15th century France. Bleaching was done by hanging the candles in sunlight.

Beeswax Candles

• Candles were used mainly for religious rites in the Middle Ages. Priests used the Roman method to make beeswax candles. Secular demand rose and Candle Guilds were formed to advance the craft.

19th Century

• Discovered by Michael Eugene Chevreul and Joseph Gay Lussac in the 1820s was stearic acid, a byproduct of the fat blended with wax to prolong burning. Spermaceti (whale's oil), bayberry and vegetable waxes were also used. Joseph Morgan's molding machine brought mass production starting in 1834.

Paraffin Wax

• Chemists learned in the 1850s how to separate and refine naturally occurring wax from petroleum. This was economical, odorless and clean burning with a low melting point. This was overcome by adding stearic acid.

20h Century

• The latter half of the century gave way to candles being used more as a decorative item than a necessity. Soybean wax was introduced as softer and slower burning.