Telescopic Task Lamp by Johan Petter Johansson for Triplex, 1920s

Telescopic Task Lamp By Johan Petter Johansson For Triplex 1920s Aluminium shade – Telescopic arms – The shade detaches from the arm to create a pendant – Brushed steel – Original On/Off toggle switch on the shade – Made by Asea under the brand name Triplex – Designed by Johan Petter Johansson – Swedish ~ 1920s – 23cm wide x 20cm tall – Extends up to 300 cm from the wall Triplex First designed in 1919 by JP Johansson (man who invented the adjustable spanner) and rapidly popular for its modernist look and superior function. Johan Petter Johansson (December 12, 1853 – August 25, 1943), sometimes known as JP, was a Swedish inventor and industrialist. He invented a modern adjustable spanner (patents in 1891 and 11 May 1892). He obtained over 100 patents in total. He was born in Vårgårda in western Sweden, the oldest of six children in a crofter’s family. His was first employed as an assistant operator of a steam engine at a local peat factory. He left Vårgårda at age 19, in 1873, for Motala to work as a navvy. Following military service in 1874, he moved to Eskilstuna where he worked for the Bolinder-Munktell factory, and in 1878 he moved to Västerås where he found employment at a mechanical workshop. Following that, he worked as a blacksmith at a nearby farm. He eventually decided to start his own business and, in 1886, moved to Enköping where he started Enköpings Mekaniska Verkstad (the Mechanical Workshop of Enköping) which quickly became a successful venture. It was during the years in his workshop that he invented the adjustable spanner and the plumber wrench. In 1890, B.A. Hjorth & Company agreed to distribute his tools worldwide under the “Bahco” trademark. The Bahco tools became greatly successful, and the company is still in operation and has manufactured over 100 million wrenches to date. Johansson transferred the then-large enterprise to his son, Hannes Brynge, and the B.A. Hjorth & Company in 1916. He started experimenting with electrical armature and in 1919 opened a new factory, Triplex, which manufactured electrical pendulums and various devices. Condition Report Re wired with modern electrical components, some light surface patina to the original paint and some shade dents and patina to the shade.