"...starts from nothing, grows possibly a little bit feminine, then a little bit masculine, then breaks up and has children. It's a sexy thing."- Craven Walker

Singapore-born inventor Craven Walker was having a pint in post W.W.II England. The pub's decor included a fascinating lamp, which Walker described as a "contraption made out of a cocktail shaker, old tins and things." It was to become the starting point and inspiration for Walker's design.

The liquid-filled inventor proceeded to purchase the equally liquid-filled lamp, whose creator (Mr. Dunnett) Walker later discovered had died. Walker became determined to make a better version of the novelty item and spent the next decade and a half doing so
     ( in between running an international house-swap agency and making films about nudism ). Walker worked on improving the lamp with his company The Crestworth Company of Dorset, England.

Initially local retail merchants thought his lamps were ugly and disgusting. Luckily, for Walker the "Psychedelic Movement" and the "Love Generation" came to dominate 60's merchandising in Great Britain and sales of the lava lamp soared. It was the perfect light for modern times, Walker declared. "If you buy my lamp, you won't need to buy drugs."

He had perfected a secret Lava® recipe of oil, wax and other solids. The original model had a large gold base with tiny holes to simulate starlight, and a 52 oz. globe that contained red or white Lava® and yellow or blue liquid. He marketed the lamp in Europe under the name of Astro Lamp. Two American entrepreneurs saw the lamp displayed at a German trade show and bought the rights to manufacture the lamp in North America. They renamed it the Lava Lite® lamp and began production in Chicago where it continues today. Craven Walker remained working as a technical advisor to the company. Before selling his company, sales of the lamps had exceeded seven million units. Today with over 400,000 lamps made each year, the Lava Lite® lamp is enjoying a comeback.

How the Basic Lamp Works

Base: Holds a 40 watt frosted appliance light bulb inside a reflecting cone. This cone rests on a second cone, which houses the light bulb socket and electrical cord connection. The electrical cord has a small in-line switch on it and a standard US 120v plug.

Lamp: A glass container containing two fluids, called water and lava, both trade secrets. A metal cap seals the top of the lamp. There is a small amount of air at the very top of the lamp. Loose at the bottom of the lamp is a small coil of wire called the element.

Top Cap: A small plastic cover over the top of the lamp which serves to both hide the lamp's inner cap and the waterline.