New York Tiffany Studios’ Exquisite ‘Jeweled Prism’ Table Lamp

This exquisite Tiffany Studios Jeweled prism lamp features a pierced heat cap adorned with a border of twenty ogival turtleback tiles. The ogival motif, which originated in 11th-century Byzantine textiles, became a prominent design element across Italy, Ottoman Turkey, North Africa, and the Balkans. The pierced and chased decoration on the cap forms an intricate shamsa pattern—an elaborately decorated rosette traditionally found in Islamic manuscripts, carpets, ornamental metalwork, and architectural embellishments like the undersides of domes. Meaning “little sun,” shamsa symbolizes the unity of God in Islam.

 Descending from the heat cap, each golden prism shimmers with remarkable transparency, casting an iridescent glow. No two prisms are alike, creating a watercolor-like effect that shifts from pale yellow to green to orange, with hints of blue. Tiffany’s fascination with prismatic color theory, inspired by Isaac Newton’s Opticks, was reflected in his writings for Scientific American. Newton’s famous prism experiment demonstrated that white light comprises a spectrum of colors, and by the late 19th century, amateur scientists were encouraged to replicate it using chandelier prisms. As a man of the modern age, Tiffany believed that science and art must co-function for the greatest effect. The shade is supported by a Jacob’s Ladder base, an elegant structure composed of six ladders with trifid feet resting on a round disk. Named after the biblical vision of a ladder ascending to heaven, as described in the Book of Genesis, the base lends a symbolic dimension to the lamp’s design. The lamp is fitted with three sockets, each operated by a pull chain.