Limelight (also known as Drummond light or calcium light)James R. Smith (2004). ''San Francisco's Lost Landmarks'', Quill Driver Books. is a type of stage lighting once used in

theatres Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and music halls. An intense illumination is created when a flame fed by oxygen and hydrogen is directed at a cylinder of quicklime (

calcium oxide Calcium oxide (CaO), commonly known as quicklime or burnt lime, is a widely used chemical compound. It is a white, caustic, alkaline, crystalline solid at room temperature. The broadly used term "''lime''" connotes calcium-containing inorganic ...

), which can be heated to before melting. The light is produced by a combination of incandescence and

candoluminescence Candoluminescence is the light given off by certain materials at elevated temperatures (usually when exposed to a flame) that has an intensity at some wavelengths which can, through chemical action in flames, be higher than the blackbody emission ex ...

. Although it has long since been replaced by electric lighting, the term has nonetheless survived, as someone in the public eye is still said to be "in the limelight". The actual lamps are called "limes", a term which has been transferred to electrical equivalents.

History

Discovery and invention

The limelight effect was discovered in the 1820s by

Goldsworthy Gurney Sir Goldsworthy Gurney (14 February 1793 – 28 February 1875) was an English surgeon, chemist, architect, builder, lecturer and consultant. He was a prototypical British gentleman scientist and inventor of the Victorian era. Amongst many acc ...

, based on his work with the "oxy-hydrogen blowpipe", credit for which is normally given to Robert Hare. In 1825, a Scottish engineer,

Thomas Drummond Captain Thomas Drummond (10 October 1797 – 15 April 1840), from Edinburgh was a Scottish army officer, civil engineer and senior public official. He used the Drummond light which was employed in the trigonometrical survey of Great Britain an ...

(1797–1840), saw a demonstration of the effect by

Michael Faraday Michael Faraday (; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English scientist who contributed to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic inducti ...

and realized that the light would be useful for surveying. Drummond built a working version in 1826, and the device is sometimes called the ''Drummond light'' after him.

Early use in the United Kingdom

The earliest known use of limelight at a public performance was outdoors, over

Herne Bay Pier Herne Bay Pier was the third pier to be built at Herne Bay, Kent for passenger steamers. It was notable for its length of and for appearing in the opening sequence of Ken Russell's first feature film ''French Dressing''. It was destroyed in ...

, Kent, on the night of 3 October 1836 to illuminate a juggling performance by magician

Ching Lau Lauro Ching Lau Lauro and Professor Ching were the stage names of a juggler and magician (1806?–1840; flourished 1827–1839) who performed outdoors and in theatres in London and the provinces. His real name is unknown; he was possibly Cornish and ...

. This performance was part of the celebrations following the laying of the

foundation stone The cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure. Over tim ...

of the Clock Tower. The advertising leaflet called it ''koniaphostic'' light and announced that "the whole pier is overwhelmed with a flood of beautiful white light". Limelight was first used for indoor stage illumination in the Covent Garden Theatre in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in 1837 and enjoyed widespread use in theatres around the world in the 1860s and 1870s. Limelights were employed to highlight solo performers in the same manner as modern spotlights.

Early use in the United States

During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

in July and August 1863 calcium lights were used during the siege of

Fort Wagner Fort Wagner or Battery Wagner was a beachhead fortification on Morris Island, South Carolina, that covered the southern approach to Charleston Harbor. It was the site of two American Civil War battles in the campaign known as Operations Again ...

, allowing

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

forces to illuminate their artillery target at night while simultaneously blinding

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

gunners and riflemen. Calcium lights were also installed on Union Navy ships.In the Limelight: A Civil War Military Innovation
/ref> Limelight was replaced by electric arc lighting in the late 19th century.

Gallery

Homemade Limelight.JPG, Heating calcium hydroxide (slaked lime) in a stove burner causes it to glow, although this is not as bright as a real limelight Limelight (19e eeuw).jpg, alt=19th century limelight used for stage lighting, 19th century limelight used for stage lighting (collection: Stadsschouwburg (city theatre) Bruges, Belgium)

References

Bibliography

*
Art Gallery of South Australia History of Limelights
{{Artificial light sources Types of lamp Stage lighting Scottish inventions Hydrogen technologies