KAESTNER & TOEBELMANN (K&T)  - D.R. PATENT Nr. 3269

This is my oldest K & T and the first 4 glass paneled lantern I've owned.   It is a very early and rare KAESTNER & TOEBELMANN, Erfurt.  Roughly 139 years old, she is still so gorgeous!

The brass wick driver is one clue to the year in which this lantern was produced.   All Brass wick knobs  having the words :"Kaestner &Toebelmann, Erfurt"  indicate the oldest lanterns.  The finger pull globe lift system on this lantern is made of brass.   Only the oldest K &T models have this brass system. This lantern dates somewhere between 1878 - 1890.

The badge on the fuel fount is deteriorated from age and difficult to make out.  With the help of Andrzej Matla, he was almost positive it states: 'DR Patent 3269'.

It has had multiple restorations preformed on it over all these years; some good repairs; some bad repairs.

The lantern is extremely fragile and I encountered the following issues with this lantern:

1. One of the original glass panels is cracked.  Given how old the glass is, it was best to carefully glue it in order to save it.  This was very minor.

2. The insert for the burner is no longer present.  One of the past repairs included soldering on a  piece of brass metal onto the base of the burner in order to act as the 'insert'.  Unfortunately, the burner itself was soldered into the burner cone.  It was not placed correctly so the burner & burner cone do not sit properly.  Close but not exact.

3. There was a significant amount of tin missing on the rim of the fuel tank. The material that was used (Bondo?) could not be safely removed as it would most likely damage more of the lantern.  I could only lightly sand it and then match the color on the lantern as best I could.

This lantern will most likely never burn again,  but she is a lovely old lady who deserves to be displayed and I treasure this lantern.

CIRCA: 1878 - 1890