Peter Bowles: Original BTC Founder and the Bone China Lamp

Original BTC founder Peter Bowles with the Original BTC team

In 1990 Peter Bowles founded Original BTC in Oxfordshire, England. He became the first designer to use bone china for lighting, and that one idea still defines the company: a lamp that turns into a soft, translucent source of light.

The Hector

The Hector is one of his first designs for Original BTC, the bone china dome that made the company’s name. It comes as pendants in several sizes, wall lights, table lamps and clip lights, so one shape can carry through a kitchen, a hallway and a bedside.

“Founder Peter Bowles was the first designer to use bone china for lighting.”

Store note, from our Original BTC listings

How the bone china is made

Original BTC casts its bone china in its own factory in Stoke-on-Trent, the heart of British ceramics. Liquid slip is poured into moulds, then each piece is dried, sponged, fettled and fired over several days. It is one of the few lighting brands that still makes its own pieces in Britain.

The house he built

Below the Hector you will find other lights from the company he founded, from the Hatton and Stanley pendants to the rise-and-fall Cobb, the Magnus chandeliers and the Oval brass bulkheads. They are Original BTC designs, made in England.

Shop Peter Bowles and Original BTC at LoftModern

16 pieces across 13 designs, ready to order

Original BTC Hector Medium Dome Wall Light with Switch in Satin Brass Grey Cable – detail 1Hector Medium Dome Wall Light with Switch by Original BTCFrom $515Shop now→Original BTC Hector Medium Dome Table Lamp – main viewHector Medium Dome Table Lamp by Original BTCFrom $645Shop now→Hector Pendant Size 4 by Original BTC, bone china dome pendant, litHector Pendant Size 4 by Original BTCFrom $695Shop now→Original BTC Hector Size 3 Pendant – main viewHector Size 3 Pendant by Original BTCFrom $645Shop now→Original BTC Hatton 4 Pendant – main viewHatton 4 Pendant by Original BTCFrom $1,799Shop now→Original BTC Stanley Small Pendant, Polished Copper – main viewStanley Small Pendant, Polished Copper by Original BTCFrom $829Shop now→Original BTC Cobb Large Rise and Fall Pendant – main viewCobb Large Rise and Fall Pendant by Original BTCFrom $929Shop now→Original BTC Magnus C4 Chandelier – main viewMagnus C4 Chandelier by Original BTCFrom $3,899Shop now→Original BTC Oval Bulkhead with Eyelid Shield, Polished Brass – main viewOval Bulkhead with Eyelid Shield, Polished Brass by Original BTCFrom $699Shop now→Original BTC Alma Pendant Light in Coral – main viewAlma Pendant Light by Original BTCFrom $1,100Shop now→Original BTC Fin Pendant, Large – main viewFin Pendant, Large by Original BTCFrom $759Shop now→Original BTC Spun Reflector Pendant, Large – main viewSpun Reflector Pendant, Large by Original BTCFrom $3,749Shop now→Well Glass Pendant, Weathered Brass by Original BTC, hand-blown clear glass shadeWell Glass Pendant, Weathered Brass by Original BTCFrom $1,100Shop now→Original BTC Task Floor Lamp in Putty Grey – detail 2Task Floor Lamp by Original BTCFrom $1,699Shop now→Original BTC Drop Three Pendant, Matte – main viewDrop Three Pendant, Matte by Original BTCFrom $1,100Shop now→Original BTC Cargo Cluster Wall/Ceiling Light with Guard – main viewCargo Cluster Wall/Ceiling Light with Guard by Original BTCFrom $1,699Shop now→

Read more about Original BTC

Sources: LoftModern product listings for Original BTC. The grid shows the Hector, which Peter Bowles designed, followed by other lights from the company he founded.