Homepage

Electrical items from around the world

This page is dedicated to documenting my collection of electrical items, new and old, from around the world; this includes not just plugs and sockets but also items used for electrical installations.

Most of the things in the collection come from Italy, as that's where I live, however items from other countries are also present.

Check out the General Information page for a brief explanation of the main features of the Italian electrical system!

Info: a new version of this page is being worked on! You can check it out here, though it's currently incomplete and might contain inaccuracies.

General information
A general overview of the (surprisingly complicated) Italian electrical system
History:
History of the Italian electrical system
A brief history of most of the important changes the electrical system in Italy saw over the decades
Electrical safety around the world
Devices and design elements used worldwide in order to protect people against electrical shocks
Evolution of electrical safety in Italy
History of electrical safety devices in use in Italy over time, and their evolution
Electrical items from Italy:
Vintage plugs and sockets
Old rewireable plugs and connector sockets from Italy
Vintage wall-mounted sockets and lightswitches
Old electrical accessories as found inside homes
Vintage fuse and breaker panels
Various types of fuses and breakers, used to protect against overloads and short-circuits
Modern electrical items
Electrical devices in use in Italy nowadays
Items from other countries:
North American electrical items
Electrical items used in North America
European electrical items
Electrical items used in other European countries
Japanese electrical items
Electrical items used in Japan
Other pages:
Other devices and unusual items
Devices present in the collection that don't fit into any of the other categories
Travel adaptors
Adaptors used to convert one style of plug into another, and the dangers posed by some of them
Terminology
Technical terminology found on this site, and an explanation of its usage
Browse pages by plug type:
North American plugs and sockets (NEMA standards)
Types A, B
Plugs and sockets used in North and Central America, as well as some other countries
CEE 7/1 and 7/2 – European unearthed plugs and sockets
Type C
Two-pin plugs and sockets in use in Europe (and most 230V countries) before the advent of earthed variants
CEE 7/3 and 7/4 – German-style ("Schuko") plugs and sockets
Type F
The type of plugs and sockets most commonly used in Europe, as well as in Russia and other countries
CEE 7/5 and 7/6 – French-style plugs and sockets
Type E
Plugs and sockets used in France, Belgium, Poland, Czechia and Slovakia
SN 441011 – Swiss plugs and sockets
Type J
Types of plugs and sockets used in Switzerland (and parts of Liechtenstein)
DS 107-2-D1 – Danish plugs and sockets
Type K
Types of earthed (three-pin) plugs and sockets commonly used in Denmark
External resources:
Videos and Twitter threads: