Carbon wire filament incandescent light bulb

Carbon filament lamps were the first incandescent light bulbs, in which a filament emits light when heated by an electric current.The filament must be kept ina vacuum to prevent it from burning up,and this is why the filament is enclosed in a glass bulb.Thomas Edison and Joseph Swan were both pioneersin the development of the light bulb.The earliest light bulbs had a filament of charred cellulose or charred bamboo, like this lamp.The wires are very delicate.The various manufacturers produced their own proprietary lamp bases in the early days.Edison's is still in use alongside the bayonet fitting today.