Winged Wheel – Flame Sense – Bessho Lamps - Osaka, Japan
On this page you will find more information about the Japanese manufacturer of Winged Wheel hurricane lanterns, a company that is still producing hurricane lanterns after more than 100 years of history. You can also visit the official Winged Wheel website through the link below.
Please note: all photographs and information on this page have been used with permission from Flame Sense. They may not be copied, reproduced, or used elsewhere without prior permission from Flame Sense
Below you will find an overview of the different types of vintage Winged Wheel hurricane lanterns.
The Beginning of the Bessho Brothers
Winged Wheel is a Japanese manufacturer from Osaka, active since 1924.
The company was founded by Hisayoshi Bessho after he was approached by the trading company Miyazaki Shoten with the request to develop a Japanese-made hurricane lantern.
The first attempts were unsuccessful, after which his younger brother Tomekichi Bessho became involved in the project. Following almost ten years of research, testing, and improvement, the Bessho brothers succeeded in producing what is regarded as the first domestically manufactured hurricane lantern in Japan.
The WINGED WHEEL Brand
In 1935, Miyazaki Shoten registered the trademark WINGED WHEEL. Under this brand, hurricane lanterns were sold both domestically and exported on a large scale. Established markets included North America, Northern Europe, East and West Africa, and Southeast Asia. During the peak export years around the 1970s, demand from the American market alone was so large that the small workshop could only fulfil approximately one third of orders, even with craftsmen working day and night.
In 1955, the trademark was transferred from Miyazaki Shoten to Bessho Lamp. During this period, several other lamp socket manufacturers in Osaka closed one by one. One of them handed over their moulds and tools to Bessho with a single request: "Please do not let the flame of the lamp go out." These tools were taken over and, combined with further research and improvements, Bessho began production of lamp burner components as well.
Next to this, you can also find a catalogue image from 1950 showing two models of hurricane lanterns, as well as a skater’s lantern.
Third Generation – Domestic Focus
In 1978, Akira Bessho became the third-generation director of the company. Faced with increasingly volatile export markets, he made a deliberate strategic decision to withdraw from international trade and focus exclusively on the Japanese domestic market. It was Akira who left behind the words that would define the company's philosophy for generations to come:
"When there is darkness and a flame burns, people naturally gather around it. Lovers fall in love with the reflection of the flame in each other's eyes. Families should sometimes turn off the electric lights and talk to each other by the light of an oil lamp — that is how a family becomes what it can be."
— Akira Bessho, 3rd generation
In 1980, the company opened a new market by developing hurricane lanterns for use in agricultural greenhouses. By exploiting the specific properties of oil lamps — the release of carbon dioxide and the promotion of photosynthesis in crops — Bessho entered an entirely new segment of the agricultural industry.
Reorganisation and New Beginning
In 2003, the partnership Bessho Lamp Seisakusho was dissolved. The following year, in 2004, Fumiko Bessho founded a new sole proprietorship, Bessho Lamp Kōgeisha, in Kameii, Yao-shi, Osaka — keeping the flame alive for the fourth generation. In 2007, this was formalised as Kabushiki Kaisha WINGED WHEEL, with Fumiko Bessho as director.
Fumiko later recalled an experience that brought her father Akira's words into sharp focus:
"I was watching a film — a romantic dinner scene with an oil lamp between two people — and I immediately thought of my father's words. He was right. He was talking about love."
— Fumiko Bessho, 4th generation
The Flame Sense Brand
In 2012, the current fifth-generation director Yuka Bessho opened an online shop, making Winged Wheel hurricane lanterns available directly to customers around the world for the first time. In 2013 she was formally appointed as representative director. In 2016, the consumer brand FLAME SENSE was launched — a bridge between century-old craftsmanship and a contemporary audience seeking genuine, warm light.
Yuka Bessho describes the lanterns they make as something that has always carried a dual purpose:
"A lamp that is beautiful when it is burning, and beautiful when it is not. That belief was passed down from grandfather to my mother, and from my mother to me."
— Yuka Bessho, 5th generation
100th Anniversary – 2024
In 2024, WINGED WHEEL celebrated its centennial.
During their 100th anniversary, limited edition hurricane lanterns were created in collaboration with artists. These special editions can be seen below.
. A century after the first Japanese-made hurricane lantern left the workshop in Osaka, the flame continues to burn.
The lanterns are made entirely in Japan. Every part — from the burner to the glass chimney and the tank — is produced with the same attention to craft that Tomekichi Bessho brought to his work a hundred years ago.
Below you will find a fascinating video showing how Winged Wheel hurricane lanterns are made.
Sources and acknowledgements
All information and photographs used in this article originate from the Flame Sense website and have been published here with permission from Flame Sense. These materials may not be copied, reproduced, or used elsewhere without prior permission from Flame Sense.
Below you will find a link to the Flame Sense website, where you can discover more articles and visit their webshop. At the time of writing, they unfortunately do not ship outside Japan, but hopefully this will change in the near future.