Mystery Object #4

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Today's mystery object is an unusual type of miners' safety lamp with a blue rather than transparent glass screen. What was it used for? Sound off in the comments with your guess, and I will reveal the correct answer in tomorrow's follow-up video.
Miner's Lamp Video: • Miners' Safety Lamps: ...

[@Climber247]

Was it like a blackout lamp? I'm thinking it was a way for miners to still dimly light their way in the mines, but the light shining out of the mine entrances wouldn't give away their location to German air raids. Maybe coal mines were targeted in 1940 by bomber raids due to their importance as a war resource for the UK at that time? That's my guess, anyway.

[@Todd-ml8lx]

I remember hearing this, something about the blue light hard to see for pilots above 2 thousand feet.....

[@CAMacKenzie]

Ya, that was my idea, too.

[@ScoutSniper3124]

Hailwood's type 01 miner's lamp, made by Ackroyd and Best Ltd, Leeds, c.1925. Adapted with blue glass for use as an air raid lamp by World War Two ARP Wardens. This safety lamp was designed to illuminate the pitch black depths of a coal mine, but it was adapted for use above ground during the gloom of World War Two blackouts. When war broke out in 1939, manufacturer Ackroyd and Best Ltd adapted surplus miner's safety lamps with blue glass which made them harder for enemy bombers to spot from above. ARP air raid wardens carried the dim blue lamps as they patrolled Britain's blacked-out streets during air raids. It was their job to make sure no light was peeping through the curtains and shutters of homes and factories.

[@alext8828]

Used for detecting methane turning the flame blue. The blue glass made the change more visible by filtering the yellow flame.

[@sarj743]

ARP air raid wardens carried the dim blue lamps as they patrolled Britain's blacked-out streets during air raids. - courtesy of Science Museum Group

[@bob_the_bomb4508]

Makes sense as broken gas mains were a significant secondary hazard in bombed areas. Thus having a version of the Davy Lamp would be useful

[@bob_the_bomb4508]

@@clark9992 maybe as a hint to those who don’t realise that the Blitz stretched a lot further, albeit occasionally

[@sarj743]

London for WW2 Blitz?@@clark9992

[@BlaMM74]

They were used for black lights in the early pre-discotheque night clubs. There was even an old saying about them... If I recall it was something about "from cave to rave"

[@tp3521]

GAS INDICATOR? The suspense is killing me! Haha! Thanks for all the great videos!

[@TheChipmunk2008]

Yes indeed, Gilles is a master of the art and this channel needs WAY more subs

[@lefroy1]

Early 1940s would suggest a wartime application. Something less visible to the Luftwaffe would be my guess for the use of blue glass.

[@mikeskelly2356]

Re-purposed mining lamps made redundant by electric lights in mines. The lamps were used in Britain during the Blitz to signify a gas mains leak as well as general illumination during a 'blackout', the blue glass made the light undetectable to enemy aircraft flying overhead...

[@AIM54A]

Sounds like a lamp used during war time. Enough light to see your shoes but not a bright light that German bombers could see as they flew over. Just my guess.

[@safetysandals]

Used in the south of England in the beginning of the 1940s. Why do I get the feeling this has something to do with the Battle of Britain? Perhaps a way to mark air raid shelters?

[@tekture]

Likely something to do with the blitz - maybe the blue light doesn't reflect off foliage as much, so the lamp is easy to spot on the ground (presumably as a signal) but not from overhead?

[@stephenwalters9891]

Well, it's a Davey Lamp. A type of Davy lamp with apertures for gauging flame height The lamp consists of a wick lamp with the flame enclosed inside a mesh screen. The screen acts as a flame arrestor; air (and any firedamp present) can pass through the mesh freely enough to support combustion, but the holes are too fine to allow a flame to propagate through them and ignite any firedamp outside the mesh. It originally burned a heavy vegetable oil.[citation needed] The lamp also provided a test for the presence of gases. If flammable gas mixtures were present, the flame of the Davy lamp burned higher with a blue tinge. Lamps were equipped with a metal gauge to measure the height of the flame. Miners could place the safety lamp close to the ground to detect gases, such as carbon dioxide, that are denser than air and so could collect in depressions in the mine; if the mine air was oxygen-poor (asphyxiant gas), the lamp flame would be extinguished (black damp or chokedamp). A methane-air flame is extinguished at about 17% oxygen content (which will still support life), so the lamp gave an early indication of an unhealthy atmosphere, allowing the miners to get out before they died of asphyxiation

[@strayling1]

The colour looks like an incandescent blackout bulb my family saved from the WW2 days. It was the used during air raids to provide just enough light to see while supposedly not being visible to German bombers. My guess is that this is something similar.

[@rockets4kids]

My guess based on the hint would be to provide minimal lighting during blackout conditions (edit: yup! got it!)

[@Dennis-uc2gm]

I'm guessing the blue glass filtered out light created by the flame that was not a worry to the miner's. The blue enhanced the part of the flame that indicated DANGER .

[@timelordtardis]

This was used to detect gas in case a gas main had been ruptured in a bombed house/street. Earlier versions just had a sheet of blue glass in front.

[@rttakezo2000]

Like others, I am guessing it is for blackout. Many European militaries use blue filters on their torches, while the US and a few others use red filters.

[@brianleeming8895]

A Davy miners' lamp.

[@stephenwalters9891]

Beat me to it!

[@wilsonlaidlaw]

Hailwood and Ackroyd repurposing of surplus miner's safety lamp (which were being replaced by methane detectors and battery lights in the mines). These were rented to the mines not sold. During the war they sold them off with red and blue glass lenses, which could not be seen from overflying aircraft but still provided a measure of lighting to warn of bomb craters, gas leaks etc.

[@tsbrownie]

Blue lenses historically have been used for tracking wounded game's blood at night. It is also used where people sleep as it is less disturbing; so hospitals?

[@jonr6680]

Well, that's two more things I didn't know!

[@51WCDodge]

Also Blue is used as blackout light in military ambulances. You can't see blood under red light.

[@SteveMacSticky]

Does it make the blood darker or light it up?

[@tsbrownie]

@@SteveMacSticky Never seen it, but it's supposed to make it look whiteish

[@51WCDodge]

Allows you to see the blood, if you think of everything bathed in red, no contrast. The blue light you get a contrast against the red. @@SteveMacSticky

[@SquishyZoran]

I remember reading somewhere that blue was thought to preserve your night vision before it was discovered red so maybe it’s that?

[@51WCDodge]

Medical lamp! You never treat under red light, you can't see blood.

[@juanwuanescapado]

I was thinking it would be an ordnanceman's lamp, but after the hint, possibly an used by spotters as @DiveValor said.

[@glenkamo]

This was used by pre-WWII hippies to view their primitive black light velvet posters.

[@charlesurrea1451]

Being an army Brat, I'm familiar with colored lenses and their uses. The lights have different colors as each color can travel only as far as their wavelengths will allow.

[@RichardIresonMusician]

A bit off the wall but to see fluorescent minerals?

[@justananonymousperson7011]

Im guessing it was used Either: critical lighting during air raids, where explosives were stored, or photographic film was processed

[@johnopalko5223]

Film is highly sensitive to blue. Orthochromatic film is insensitive to red, which is why darkroom safelights are red. Panchromatic film is sensitive to all visible wavelengths, so it needs to be processed in total darkness. Photographic papers are processed under red light as they are much less sensitive than film.

[@mikezerkus6600]

I think it was probably used to work in areas that had a lot of munitions. Z

[@fredblonder7850]

I saw the video giving the answer, a few days ago. KZbin’s recommendation algorithm just presented this video now. ;-)

[@mattwilliams3456]

Bomb damage marker. I saw one years ago at a gun show on a militaria dealers table.

[@stephenwalters9891]

NOPE

[@andrewsmactips]

My guess is that Bobbys on the beat carried them at night. Blue being the standard color for police.

[@nigelgunn322]

Adapted with blue glass for use as an air raid lamp by World War Two ARP Wardens.

[@Magnedyne]

Id guess its a lamp which was meant to be used during air raids so one wouldnt give away their location. The Germans had a similar thing for a general purpose. Essentially a Neon Indicator, but way bigger. (Bienenkorblampe)

[@NoahSpurrier]

To see fluorescent minerals?

[@kazzle101]

Its a "all clear" or "go" lamp, the blue glass changes the yellow paraffin flame to a green colour. Like on the old railway semaphore signalling where they use the same scheme.

[@ChronicAssist]

Well, blue and not transparent is unusual. It must be a very special purpose. Perhaps it has the same reason why police lights in Germany were blue even before the Second World War "In Germany, the blue light was introduced in 1933. In order to meet air protection requirements (blackout), it was stipulated at the time that police vehicles had to be equipped with a blue light, as blue light has the highest scattering in the atmosphere and was therefore no longer visible to bombers at high altitudes" Translated from the german WIkipedia de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rundumkennleuchte#Blau

[@ashleyzinyk399]

I'm guessing it was used during the Blitz, as a source of light that wouldn't be too obvious to German bombers.

[@jeffdroog]

Blood detecting black light?

[@tanithrosenbaum]

Sounds like WWII blackout measures...

[@weirdscience1]

Early blacklight for phosphorescent minerals?

[@DiveValor]

Civil defense force . Movment while under air raid, or just a light bars and stores could use during such a situation.

[@BP-bx6si]

Did it cast a red light to aid in night vision adjustment?

[@blingblingcrackpipe]

Policeseses?

[@timetraveller6643]

The glass turned blue as it aged. It started out not-blue.

[@ImBotTheOnlyOne]

The battle of Britain, The blitz

[@RCAvhstape]

Perhaps it was used to see phosphorus deposits in the earth?

[@flintytheraccbold]

To make them harder to spot by airplane pilots

[@misterhat5823]

Shorts that don't suck.

[@nilo70]

Davey lamp

[@associatedblacksheepandmisfits]

A Davy lamp

[@NapoDEf]

Mosquitos

[@TheChipmunk2008]

Gilles, that is a safety lamp [goes deeper than 10 seconds]....I suspect it was used to detect chemical warfare agents? maybe they burn with a blue spectrum (I am in the south of england so my shame will be huge when i am wrong)

[@TheChipmunk2008]

my shame is large

[@happyundertaker6255]

Grubenlampe

[@mattheide2775]

Uranium detection?

[@777anarchist]

Railway signalling?

[@boundaryegg1384]

uv lamp for seeing uv luminescent ore?

[@ZOMBIEHEADSHOTKILLER]

you forgot to add the link to the description like your video claims.

[@CanadianMacGyver]

Good catch. Link added.

[@nedstar7378]

To find Uranium

[@ludditeneaderthal]

Smoking lamp?

[@susanlodges48]

You can't see them from an aircraft

[@krillyourself420]

Hi

[@NerdPirateRadio]

Hello!

[@justananonymousperson7011]

@@NerdPirateRadio Hello

[@FoulOwl2112]

Hilarious reading all these comments saying "I'm guessing..." or "My best guess is..." LMAOL You're not fooling anybody people. It's obvious you Googled it.

[@MrStevos]

I am about to UNSUBSCRIBE !! WHAT BS! Tune in tomorrow crap!!! What do you think you're a modern version of old Radio Soap Operas....

[@bellybutthole]

Nice to hear you name is not Gilmesir anymore;-)