Summary

'Century' design electric radiator manufactured by Hecla Electrics Pty Ltd, Melbourne, Australia in about 1924-25. It is cast metal with a wreath style relief decoration. The radiator has a solid copper reflector and beehive element. The Century model came with 9 or 12 inch sized reflectors.

Physical Description

Reflector dish surrounded by a wreath motif moulding. There is a wire safety grill at the front and wire support at the back. Features company logo of a volcano. Wattage and voltage markings not visible but probably 230 V and 1000 W.

Significance

Hecla Electrics Pty Ltd were a significant Melbourne manufacturing company, who became a household name in the 1920s making small electric appliances such as heaters and kettles. They also made a variety of other electrical appliances for domestic, commercial and military use. The company manufactured electric appliances in Melbourne from about 1922 until the 1980s, although Clarence Marriott, who formed the company, had begun making radiators with his father James in 1899. The company had a reputation for quality products. The company also played an important role within the Australian domestic and commercial appliance industry, both as a leading innovator and through its role in training skilled staff, many of whom went on to work for competitors such as Kambrook, Electrolux and Sunbeam.

This electric radiator represents the typical small domestic appliance that the Hecla company was famous for. Along with other items in the Hecla Collection, it highlights the diversity of electric appliances that the company made. This object also highlights the legacy of high quality design and metal construction work that Clarence and James established for the company, stemming from their early work as talented art metal workers. It also represents the first major period of the take-up of electricity use in the home. This take-up began in the 1920s and 1930s with the use of small appliances, and by the 1950s electricity had become commonplace in the home, and large appliances such as refrigerators and stoves became standard.

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