568 - Pair of Four-Light Figural Girandoles, Brass on Marble Base, H. 72.5 cm

Pair of Four-Light Figural Girandoles, Brass on Marble Base, H. 72.5 cm Brass, marble. Pair of tall figural candelabra for four candles each. Above a round, stepped base of black marble with a conically rising shaft stands a female draped figure in classical pose; the garment falls in deep vertical folds over the standing leg, one arm is raised and carries the candelabrum shaft, the other hangs down and grasps the hem. Above the hand the shaft begins with a vase form from which four identical S-shaped arms sweep out in a cross; each arm ends in a vase-shaped socket with a beaded collar and carries a turned drop on the underside. Between the arms an element, above it a sphere, a shaft, a wide flat drip pan and, as a finial, a covered vase with an applied point. One of the two candelabra lacks a socket insert. Condition commensurate with age. H. 72.5 cm each Figural girandoles with draped female figures as the shaft go back to French models of the Empire period and were reissued in cast brass and zinc in France and Germany in the late 19th century. The marble base served not only for stability but also set the candelabrum off visually from the furniture. The crowning vase above the drip pan is purely ornamental and takes no candle; it lengthens the silhouette and was usual on larger mantelpiece candelabra. Pairs are considerably more sought after than single pieces, because they were intended for symmetrical placement on a mantelpiece or console.