A company called MH Berlyn & Co made paraffin heaters back in the good old days as part of their gardening and horticulture business. It seems they began around 1905 with paraffin heaters for greenhouses, though at some point they saw a market for small paraffin cookers for use in the house since many homes didn’t have electricity back in the 1940/50’s which meant paraffin cookers and tilly lamps were the norm. So, this is not the sort of stove you’d shove in your rucksack for a weekend’s camping – it’s more for domestic use. We do have camping versions elsewhere in the collection along with dozens of other varieties. We acquired this one in a junk shop for a few pounds. It was in very poor condition but lots of TLC has brought it back to life.