illumination

"The Tower of Ivan-Veliki, Moscow, Illuminated on the night of the Coronation of Emperor Alexander II and Empress Maria Alexandrovna" published in The Illustrated London News, 1856.

Illumination of the main street in Le Havre, in honour of Louis XIV's visit to the city in 1749: figures strolling in a street lined up with buildings decorated with illuminated arches, and at the very end of the street an illuminated ship marking the entrance to the harbour; after Descamps. 1751.

Illumination at Soboronaya Square in Moscow on the occasion of the coronation of Alexander I

Lithograph for the collection "Paris and its environs" by A. Provost, representing a party at the Château d'Asnières at the beginning of the 19th century.

Ball and illumination at the Champs Elisées, July 18, 1790 in the evening: the people, the real people, ran to the Champs Elisha after the game, to enjoy a delightful spectacle which could only be the work of a great people. Published in 1790. (google translated)

View of the feast given to the Champs Elysees. Published in 1790.

The Emperor's Day, Illumination and ascent of the luminous balloon on the Champs Élysées. Published in 1853.

Print shows illuminated obelisks on the Champs Elysees in Paris in 1790, France, during a celebration with a throng of revelers playing games, dancing, and enjoying the festive atmosphere of freedom.

Perspective view of the Illuminations of the Notre-Dame bridge in celebration of the restoration of the health of Louis XIV, January 30, 1687, print, published in 1750. (google translated)

Easter in Rome - Illumination of St. Peter's and Flight of Rockets. Wood engraving published c. 1875.

Illumination in the Kremlin on the occasion of 1896 coronation celebrations

View of the building of light which was in front of the palace of His Excellency the Marschal Duke of Belle-Isle, Knight of the Orders of the King and of the Golden Fleece Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary in Germany, Engraved in Paris in the month of August 1742, Drawn on the spot by...

Illumination at Soboronaya Square in the Moscow Kremlin on the occasion of the coronation of Alexander I by Fyodor Yakovlevich Alekseyev, 1802

Here we have the 1742 view of the building of light which was in front of the palace of his Excellency Monsignor the Marshal Duke of Belle-Isle. The below image is titled and described: Veue de l'edifice de lumiere qui êtoit en face du palais de Son Excellence Mgr le mareschal duc de...

An Irish gentlemen visiting Vauxhall Gardens in 1752, whose name is not recorded, wrote about the astonishing effect of the illuminations, "The garden strikes the eye prodigiously; it is set with many rows of tall trees, kept in excellent order, among which are placed an incredible number of...

If those are candles, then these guys are trying to set the building on fire. What else could it be in 1786, gas? Original image title, "Afbeelding der Iluminatie ter Gelegenheid van 't Jubilaeum van de Hondert en vijftig Jaar der Oprechting van de Utrechtsche Academie op kosten der Heeren...

Electricity, or not? And if this is not electricity, than what is it, gas? The image is titled and dated: Celebrations of the people. at Reims the 27th of August 1765 Source