A material record / Wax
Beeswax
The wax honey bees make to build their comb, rendered into candles, polish and seals.
01 / Origin
Where it comes from.
Worker honey bees make wax in glands on the underside of the abdomen, turning the sugars in honey into small scales of wax that they shape into comb.
New comb is white or pale yellow. It darkens with use: the wax takes up pigment from the nectar and pollen stored in it, and comb used for raising brood gathers cocoons and debris over successive generations until it turns brown or black.
Candle wax is rendered from that comb, so its colour is a record of the hive: paler from newer comb, deeper from older.
02 / Colour
The colours it gives.
Sampled from the material, at the numbered points.
Beeswax is not naturally gold. Fresh wax is close to white; its honey and amber come from what the comb has held.
- 01Highlight
#E4B76B - 02Body
#CD9641 - 03Deep Wax
#8C4A04
03 / In the studies
Where it appears.
6 studies use it.
- Strasbourg ChristmasA warm, quiet glow
- Shaker ThanksgivingA honey-coloured surface offers a small warm note.
- Salzburg ChristmasBeeswax #C89E62
- Newgrange SolsticeOne honey-coloured note interrupts the cooler materials.
- Adirondack Beaver MoonBeeswax #A37F44
- AmberA soft, warm surface for candles and polish.
Care
Never leave burning candles unattended, and keep them clear of dried flowers, wheat and fabric.