Genie's Lamp

Genie's Lamp

Genie's Lamp is the magical oil lamp that served as the prison of the once all-powerful Genie for countless eons. Because it contained the all-powerful servant of the lamp, it had been coveted by many for thousands of years. But after Genie was freed, it became an ordinary oil lamp which served as Genie's home due to it being the only home he ever knew (and because all of his belongings were in there).

Description

"Do not be fooled by its commonplace appearance. Like so many things, it is not what is outside, but what is inside that counts."

—The Peddler

The lamp itself resembles a simple bronze oil lamp, a common container for genies alongside bottles. The interior of the lamp has usually been implied to have all the necessities of a modern home, such as a bathroom, living room, a dining room and anything else Genie might need. Despite these modern furnishings, the interior was described by Genie as an "itty-bitty living space", but this is understandable as even a nice home with many luxuries can be considered "itty-bitty" when its essentially one's prison, making it natural for Genie to have originally resented his home in the past, but since his freedom, Genie now considers it is his beloved home which he can freely come and go from. Since his freedom, Genie usually has Aladdin keep the lamp on his person who in turn has kept it in his old hovel before moving into the Sultan's Palace where the lamp is now kept.

History

Background

The lamp has existed for millennia, though how Genie was imprisoned in it is unknown, though his intense fear of Mukhtars may hint that they were possibly involved. Over the centuries, the lamp went through many owners, such as Ajed Al-Gebraic, Rama Tut Tut, Fatooma, just to name a few. Eventually though under unknown circumstances, the lamp was hidden deep within the Cave of Wonders where it would remain untouched for 10,000 years, due to that the cavern could only be summoned by a golden scarab and entered by an individual known as the Diamond in the Rough.

Aladdin

The evil vizier Jafar of Agrabah had spent many years searching for any information he could find regarding genies, with his research eventually leading him to the discovery of the Cave of Wonders, but he dared not risk entering it. He then manipulated a man named Gazeem who perished within the cave, and later a boy named Aladdin to recover the lamp within. As the Cave was crumbling, Jafar briefly had the lamp in his possession, but as he attempted to kill Aladdin, the boy's pet monkey Abu stole it back. Aladdin used the Genie's power to escape the underground ruins of the Cave, then used his first wish to become a prince worthy to marry Jasmine. Jafar attempted to kill him the night he came to Agrabah, but Genie saved him at the cost of his second wish. As Aladdin exposed Jafar's treachery, the vizier saw the lamp in his hat and realized the truth. Later, Jafar's sidekick parrot Iago was able to steal the lamp and give it to Jafar, who used the first two wishes to become a sultan and sorcerer respectively, again attempting to kill Aladdin by sending him to a snow-covered cliff-side far from Agrabah. After returning thanks to the Magic Carpet, Aladdin tried to steal back the lamp, but Jafar discovered him and kept him from doing so. With Jafar ready to kill Aladdin, the latter tricked Jafar into using his third wish to become a genie himself, allowing Aladdin to seal him in his own lamp which Genie tossed into the depths of the desert. Aladdin reclaimed the lamp and, after considering but dismissing using his final wish to become a prince again, he fulfilled his promise to Genie and used his third wish to set the Genie free. From then on, the lamp was used as a home and residence for Genie instead of a prison.

Aladdin: The Series

Although freed, Genie tended to spend more time outside of his lamp than within it, with the lamp serving as a place to rest and storage space more than anything else. On at least three occasions the lamp was stolen: once by Abis Mal who sought to make the Genie grant him his wishes (unaware that Genie was no longer obligated to grant wishes after his freedom), another time by Mozenrath whilst he was asleep inside it to lure Aladdin to him, and again by a 'charitable' Iago who attempted to give it away, prompting Genie to attempt to get it back as he missed his home.

Future

At some point, the lamp, or a similar one to it, was discovered by the Peddler who used it to tell his customers the story of Aladdin and the Genie.

Gallery

Concept Art

Behind the Scenes

During early production of the film, Genie's lamp went through several designs, some resembling a teapot, a bird and even a lava lamp. At one point it was even considered to have the lamp be alive and serve as a helpful character to Aladdin but this was dropped.

Trivia

• The first time he rubs it, Aladdin mentions the lamp has something written on the side: what this writing says is never revealed.
• The lamp has made regularly appearances in many other Disney's properties since its debut, ranging from movies, cartoon shows, comics, video games and even the parks.
• In the sequel, it is revealed that if a genie's lamp is destroyed, the genie itself dies. However, it seems this will not work on a freed genie, as Genie mentions in Some Enchanted Genie that someone taking his lamp will have no consequence on himself and he can survive fine without it.

Aladdin Special - Inside The Genie's Lamp - Self-Guided Tour (2004)

• The interior of the lamp was fully seen as part of the Inside the Genie's Lamp featurette, in which the lamp boasts a large living room, dining room, kitchen, spa, a master bedroom with a "fly-in" closet, and even a garden decorated with topiaries, flora, and water features. Additional areas that are mentioned (but unseen) in the featurette include a ballroom and a breakfast nook, as well as a large hall full of paintings, but despite this vast space, the lamp's false sky and garden would end at the inner walls of the lamp. The lamp was even shown to have a life and voice of its own which were based on the voice and personality of Robin Leach, former host of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. However the canonicity of this is debatable as the featurette seemingly ignored the events of all three movies, such as showing the lamp back in the Cave of Wonders, ignoring the events of The Return of Jafar while simultaneously acknowledging the events of Aladdin and the King of Thieves.
  • The fact that the lamp is alive might be a reference to the original idea of having it be a living character during early concepts of the film.