This incomplete and corroded housing has the general shape and size of a headlight (8 inches diameter and 11 inches long) but as parts seem to be missing it's hard to tell what it was.
Could it be an acetylene light? The address on the nameplate provides no clue (to me at least).
Looks a lot like vintage acetylene stage lighting.
ReplyDeleteThat would be my guess as well, stage lighting. Mounting bracket doesn't seem sturdy enough for rough service. But I am guessing.
ReplyDeleteMy WAG (based on the nameplate text then googling images) is that it's part (and only a part) of a steam generator, for either laboratory sterilization or production steam pressing use. It was called "economique" (ie, cheap) because it's made out of steel rather than brass or copper.
ReplyDeleteMy next WAG is it's the bottom half of an acetylene gas generator, without any of it's internal parts (apparently they were used for early automobile lighting, and the bracket would hold it in the correct orientation). "Economic production of vapor" fits that too.
ReplyDeleteSorry I can't come up with anything more definitive.