Ceramic fuse

[James57]

I found this ceramic fuse by an old house today. Any idea how old it is? I've never seen one like this before. It has 5134 and a backwards 'S' written on the top. It doesn't look like a '2'. It looks like it had a mica window because I found bits of mica in the hole. The top of the fuse is 1.25" in diameter and it is 1.25" long.

 

[chipveres]

Educated (?) guess: between whenever electricity was installed in that area, and World War Two. Later these were made cheaper of glass and brass, then still cheaper of plastic & brass.

Chip V.

 

[bradyboy]

you can still buy ceramic fuses
theres a lot of fuse boxes out there that still use them.
But the more modern versions have a metal cap and still have the window
Had a barn that was built in the 60s that used them, the fuses are still in use