Marbro Ceramic Chinese Urn Style Crackle Finish Table Lamp With Dragons
About the Item
- Creator:The Marbro Lamp Company (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 42.5 in (107.95 cm)Diameter: 11 in (27.94 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:Circa 1960s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Very good original condition with minor touch ups.
- Seller Location:Chicago, IL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU8419816084
The Marbro Lamp Company
The Marbro Lamp Company was one of the finest lamp producers during the mid-1900s. Its pieces were mainly sold in a handful of exclusive furniture shops. Marbro was the go-to supplier of Hollywood Regency and mid-century modern style lighting for interior designers. Its table lamps, chandeliers, floor lamps and wall sconces have graced the homes of many celebrities.
Brothers Morris and Elliott Markoff founded the Marbro Lamp Company in 1934. Its name is a combination of “Markoff” and “brothers.” The brothers relocated from Chicago to southern California after the end of World War II and set up an assembly plant in the garment district of Los Angeles.
Vases and objets d’art, sourced from all over the world, were used as lamp bases. The brass bases came from India, alabaster from Italy, porcelain from Japan and China and crystal from Germany and France. Murano glass and whimsical bronze figurines were two of the more popular base materials.
Marbro lamps were one-of-a-kind and took between 75 and 90 days to complete. Occasionally, they were made from sculptures that customers brought into the factory. Highly skilled woodturners and shade-makers crafted lampshades and wooden bases in Marbro’s shop. Some metal and glass pieces went through paint or staining treatments. The company’s best-known products were these table lamps, but it also produced a wide variety of decorative objects.
The Masco Corporation acquired the Marbro Lamp Company in 1987. Its Los Angeles assembly plant shuttered its doors in 1990. Its equipment and remaining inventory were moved to LaBarge Mirrors — a Masco subsidiary — in Michigan. Shortly after, the production of Marbro lamps ended.
On 1stDibs, find vintage Marbro Lamp Company lighting, decorative objects and more.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Chicago, IL
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 3 days of delivery.
- Marbro Crystal Vase Table Lamp with Brass TrimBy The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in Chicago, ILLarge Regency style crystal vase table lamp from fine American lamp maker, Marbro. Base is a gilt metal plinth with a brass ring with foliate detail. The Marbro signature double sock...Category
Vintage 1960s American Table Lamps
- Pair of Marbro Gilt Baluster Form Table LampsBy The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in Chicago, ILIn impeccable condition, these lamps by Marbro have a black lacquered base, Asian ornamentation, and a gilt body. Complete with original black finials and renowned Marbro attention t...Category
Vintage 1950s American Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Marbro Hand-Painted Parcel-Gilt White Porcelain Table LampBy The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in Chicago, ILHand-painted 50" tall gold leaf cherry blossoms on white ceramic chinoiserie table lamp by Marbro. Cast brass Ming style base, brushed brass stem and Dual socket illumination with br...Category
Vintage 1950s American Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass, Gold Leaf
- Bruno Merll for Marbro Capodimonte Child Bust Table LampBy Bruno Merli, The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in Chicago, ILMarbro table lamp featuring a Bruno Merli, capodimonte porcelain bust of a female child on wood plinth base. Sold sans shade. Bruno Merli is known as the premier artist...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Pair of Marbro Giltwood and Gesso Neoclassical Table LampsBy The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in Chicago, ILPair of substantial table lamps by Marbro. Wonderfully distressed from natural use, the gilt and painted wood gourd-form bodies have a patina that only age can bring. Sold sans shades.Category
Vintage 1950s American Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Crackle Glazed White Ceramic & Brass Regency Table Lamp.Located in Chicago, ILWhite crackle glazed pear shaped body table lamp. Open solid brass organic base with brass bowl spacer. Cast and pierced brass cap and spacer brass stem and dual socket pull chain il...Category
Vintage 1940s American Table Lamps
- Marbro Table Lamp Chinese PeacocksBy The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in Toledo, OHMarbro lamp with carved Asian designs of peacocks and foliage. Original finish. Good wiring. Shade is not included.Category
Vintage 1970s North American Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsComposition
- Marbro Oxblood Elephant-handled Chinese Urn Table Lamp Sangre de Boeuf RegencyBy The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in Brooklyn, NYThe Marbro company was founded by Morris Markoff and his brother, hence the name "Marbro" from Markoff brothers. They started the company shortly after WWII. The company was located in a 3 story brick building in the garment district of Los Angeles, just south of Downtown right by the Santa Monica Freeway. During the time they ran the company, they sold almost as many antiques as they did lamps. Marbro sold their products mainly through interior designers and a few upscale furniture stores. Most of the products were built to order. A typical order from a designer or retailer took between 75 and 90 days to complete. Most of the components that made up the lamp bodies (ceramic, brass, glass, etc) were purchased from small companies and antique dealers around the world. For the most part, none of the bodies were made on site. . Italy was the source for alabaster, Japan and China for Porcelain, Brass in India and Crystal from Germany and France. Lamps would also be made from sculptures that customers brought to in to the shop. Once the lamp bodies arrived, a group of Marbro employees would make the wood bases, spin the metal caps, make the shades, and do the painting and tinting. With the help of about 20-40 other true world class artisans, metal workers, finishers and handmade shade makers, they produced lamps and shades that were truly some of last of their kind of art. Here we have an astonishing example of Marbro production. This mid to late 18th century lusciously oxblood lacquered "sang de boeuf" Chinese urn was almost certainly a custom commission by a client, the owner of the Qing urn. The exceptional quality of the urn, it's size, gentle proportions, the even application of the oxblood glaze (especially over the stunning elephant handles) are of a quality that I have not seen before in a lamp. The Marbro artisans truly did right by their client, as they allowed the exceptional form and color of the Chinese antique take center stage. The simple base follows the proportion of the body yet perfectly echoes the angle and curve of the elephant trunk handles. Victorian lampshade...Category
Antique Late 18th Century Chinese Qing Table Lamps
MaterialsPorcelain
- Pair Chinese Style Table Lamps by Marbro After James MontBy James Mont, The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in New York, NYStylish, chic and impressive pair of table lamps in the Asian, Hollywood Regency style, after James Mont. Both lamps are in very good, working condition, both have been rewired and a...Category
Mid-20th Century American Hollywood Regency Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- 1970s Ceramic Table Lamps by Marbro, PairBy The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in New York, NYThese lamps were produced by the Marbro Lamp Company. Their design includes a ceramic jar body with a painterly blue-gray glaze and stylized brass decorations adorning each side of t...Category
20th Century American Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Italian Ceramic Faience Table Lamp by MarbroBy The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in Rio Vista, CALarge Italian ceramic lidded urn table lamp by Marbro Lamp Co. featuring a faience hand-painted body with Indigo blue flowers and foliage. Supported by a turned ceramic plinth...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Marbro Parcel-Gilt Ceramic Vase Table LampBy The Marbro Lamp CompanyLocated in Rio Vista, CALarge parcel-gilt ceramic vase table lamp made by Marbro. Features a large ceramic vase with a pierced body decorated with a floral motif on e...Category
20th Century American Hollywood Regency Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass