The history of the candle: from the Middle Ages to the present day

Before Edison, humanity spent centuries living by the flame. The candle lit up our homes, our churches, our streets and our lives. From a simple source of light to a contemporary object of desire, let us trace its extraordinary journey.

Ancient origins (before the Middle Ages)

As early as ancient Egypt (3000 BC), people dipped reeds in animal fat to make torches. The Romans developed the first candles with a wick (around 500 BC), using tallow (mutton fat) or beeswax.

Beeswax was already reserved for the wealthy: it burned cleanly and without odour. Tallow, on the other hand, smelled unpleasant and smoked heavily, but it was available to everyone.

The Middle Ages: the candle becomes sacred

In the Middle Ages, the candle took on a religious dimension. Churches and monasteries were the main consumers, and beeswax became a symbol of purity (the Virgin Mary was associated with the hard-working bee).

The first chandlers’ guilds then emerged:

• The tallow chandlers (for ordinary people)
• The wax chandlers (beeswax, for the Church and the nobility)

In France, the chandlers’ guild was officially recognised in Paris in 1061. It was already a skilled craft: people spoke of a “master wax chandler”.

The Renaissance and the classical age

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the candle became a status symbol. Châteaux (Versailles above all) burned thousands in a single evening. Louis XIV insisted that candles be replaced even if they had not burned down: only the brightest light was worthy of the Sun King.

This was also when scented candles first appeared: herbs, flowers and resins were mixed into the wax to mask odours.

The early 19th century: the chemical revolution

Advances in chemistry transformed the candle. In 1825, the French chemist Michel-Eugène Chevreul identified fatty acids, paving the way for stearin: a candle that does not drip, does not smoke and burns well. A revolution!

Shortly afterwards, paraffin was invented (1850), derived from petroleum. It made cheap, mass-produced candles possible. It brought candles within everyone’s reach… but also marked the beginning of their slow loss of prestige.

The 19th century: electricity looms

The arrival of gas lighting, followed by electric light (Edison, 1879), sounded the death knell for the candle as the main source of light. It seemed doomed… but it held its ground.

Why? Because it was never just about light. It is ritual, atmosphere, ceremony. We light candles for birthdays, in mourning, for prayer and for romantic dinners. Electricity cannot replace that.

The 20th century: the candle becomes a decorative object

After the Second World War, the candle reinvented itself as a decorative object. Scandinavian brands popularised coloured and sculpted candles. In the United States, the “scented candle” took off in the 1970s with Yankee Candle.

In France, the 1990s and 2000s saw the emergence of a new wave as luxury brands moved into the market: Diptyque (1961), Cire Trudon (1643, revived in 2007), Le Labo, Aesop… The candle became an object of desire once more.

The 21st century: a return to nature

Today, the candle is undergoing a threefold revolution:

• Natural waxes: a return to natural ingredients (beeswax, soy, rapeseed)
• Clean fragrances: free from phthalates and colourants, with full traceability
• Local craftsmanship: a rejection of industrial production and a celebration of made in France

This is the movement we champion at PHLAME: a return to artisan fundamentals, combined with a contemporary sensibility for design and experience.

The PHLAME candle: 1,000 years of heritage

When we pour a candle in our Cholet workshop, we become part of this long tradition:

• Our beeswax is our inheritance from the medieval master wax chandlers
• Our fragrances from Grasse come to us from the Renaissance
• Our handcrafted gestures connect us to the guilds of old
• Our contemporary design firmly belongs to our own era

Every candle is a fragment of this history. When you light it, you awaken 5,000 years of civilisation.

Did you know?

• The French word “bougie” comes from the town of Béjaïa (Algeria), a major port for exporting wax in the Middle Ages.
• Before the 18th century, people mainly spoke of a “chandelle” (tallow candle) or a “cierge” (beeswax taper).
• The French expression “à la chandelle” (meaning in secret, in the evening) dates back to the 16th century.
• A 150 g candle can burn for several dozen hours: enough to light many a candlelit dinner.

Discover the rest of the story: our workshop, fragrances from Grasse and why we chose beeswax.