April 2026
Rewiring an antique light safely
What to replace, what to keep, and why you should never drill a bronze.
A nineteenth-century chandelier or sconce can be used daily, provided the entire electrical part is renewed: new textile cable, compliant lampholders, earthing when the structure is metal.
Everything else should stay untouched. Never drill a bronze arm to run a wire, never shorten an original chain, never swap old drops for modern crystal: each of those instantly costs part of the value.
Finally, the light itself. A warm filament bulb around 2200 to 2700 kelvin restores the colour these objects were designed for. Cold LED flattens bronze and turns crystal bluish.
