Tesla Coil-ish

Nikola Tesla was a Serbian-American engineer and physicist who rivaled Thomas Edison for his discoveries and inventions with electricity; in fact, Tesla originally worked for Edison but they became bitter competitors and enemies.

Tesla’s work became the basis for much our modern lifestyle. He created the AC (alternating current) technology that’s widely used in homes and businesses today (Edison advocated DC or direct current). Tesla sent the first wireless radio transmission (verified later by the US Supreme Court), yet Marconi got the credit. Tesla studied X-rays, robotics, supersonic flight, and even experimented with a thought camera and an outer space death ray.

Tesla, whose zenith occurred in the late 1800’s, has become an icon in the world of Steampunk. He is often portrayed as inventing time travel and alternate realities and other wondrous creations ahead of their time using steam, springs, brass, and Victorian technology.

One of Tesla’s showiest real-life inventions was a donut-shaped device called the Tesla Coil which uses polyphase alternating currents to produce very high voltages. Tesla loved to show off his coil in live demonstrations, creating crackling sparks, arcs of lightning, and sheets of electric flame to the gasping, shrieking delight of his audience. Today, the Tesla Coil is mostly used for entertainment.

We at OHM created this donut-shaped Stopper to slide onto your bangle and hold your beads in place, and we named it after Tesla’s famous arcing, sparking coil. We even covered it with 19th century technology that Tesla might have used, such as gears, tubes, hoses, and bolts. Enjoy this tribute to a master inventor and Steampunk icon, along with all the beads in our Steampunk collection. Don’t be too surprised if it sparks a little genius in your creativity too!