Early candles were far from the clean-burning versions we know. In medieval Europe, most people used tallow candles made from animal fat. These produced a smoky, sputtering flame and a distinctly unpleasant odor, limiting their use in close quarters. Wealthier households and churches preferred beeswax candles, which burned cleaner and brighter but were much more expensive. The 19th century brought two major changes: stearin wax made candles harder, and Joseph Morgan’s invention of a candle-moldi