RARE PAIR OF HEIFETZ ROTAFLEX BEDSIDE LAMPS (1950s)

A very rare pair of 1950s walnut lamps with Rotaflex shades. (Rotaflex refers to a method of plastic production developed in France in the 1950s and the plastic so produced.) These were designed and produced by Yasha Heifetz of Heifetz Manufacturing USA and feature beehive-shaped shades with solid walnut bases. Their condition is near mint; they have been professionally rewired. ROTAFLEX™ is a patented method of spinning cellulose acetate 'yarn' into a lampshade. The patent, filed in 1946 by Danish civil engineers Bent Højberg Pedersen and Bent Panker, describes the process by which a thermoplastic, bioplastic cord of cellulose acetate is spun onto a mold by hand. Cellulose acetate is an early acrylic with various trade names: Rhodoid in France and the UK, Tenite in the US, and Cellon in Germany. As it's lighter than glass, less fragile than paper, and allows for a great variety of shapes and colors, it became popular with lighting designers. Moreover it gives a beautiful light. Object