Lampshade

In 1763, the réverbères, oil lamps with reflectors, began to be hung in Paris above the center of streets for illumination at night.

In 1879, Joseph Swan and Thomas Edison independently developed the incandescent filament electric light bulb by building on research by Humphry Davy, De Moleyn and Heinrich Göbel.

With the brighter lights, designers in the early 20th century focused on reducing the glare from electric lamps using lampshades.

The great advantage of the electric light bulb was the absence of flame and traces of combustion, thus avoiding all risks of intoxication, explosion or fire.

Darker shades sometimes add a reflective liner such as gold or silver in order to maximize light output.

The harp is typically seated below the socket and two arms rise up around the light bulb and join at the top, where it provides resting support for the spider fitter itself.

Here, and especially with shades which have sloped sides, the distance between the surface and the bulb reduces making the risk of overheating a concern.

[7] The heat generated by incandescent light bulbs can scorch fabric lampshades and can crack glass shades.