A design for a silver or ormolu candlestick branches, by John Yenn, after Sir William Chambers, c. 1770

A drawing of a silver or ormolu candlestick branches. Profile. Shown full size 190 x 210 mm (one branch).

A design for a silver or ormolu candlestick branches. The branches spring from an acanthus calyx and have acanthus and reeded decoration as have the nozzles. Between them is a vase holding a third candle. They are set in a candlestick nozzle exactly the same as E.5030-1910. The drawing has been cut just below the start of the nozzle and across half of the left hand arm. This candlestick branches are for use in the candlestick E.5030-1910, the branches design however are in a neoclassical style of circa 1770 and may show an updating of the existing candlestick to a later style. The branches are very close in design to those of the ormolu and bluejohn vases designed by Chambers and made by Matthew Boulton in 1770- 1771. Bought together with 72 other drawings from Major H. Bateman via J. Starkie Gardner on the 29th November 1910, for £ 37-0-0.
A drawing of a similar pair of branches is at the RIBA (VOS/89, page 24. Young 1986, fig.34).

Chambers was born in Sweden and died in London. He travelled widely, visiting China, and studied architecture at the Ecole des Arts, Paris, from 1749 and in Italy from 1750 to 1755. Many of his drawings from this period are contained in his important 'Franco-Italian' album, held in the V&A. Chambers moved to London in 1755 and published his influential Treatise on Civil Architecture in 1759. Chambers demonstrated the breadth of his style in buildings such as Gower (later Carrington) House and Melbourne House, London, in such country houses as Duddingston, Scotland, and in the garden architecture he designed for Wilton House, Wiltshire, and at Kew Gardens. He became head of government building in 1782, and in this capacity built Somerset House, London. Chambers also designed furniture and silver. The silver is usually linked to clients for whom he was also designing architectural schemes. The designs for silver are all in the hand of the architect John Yenn, who was a pupil of Chambers, for whom he became a leading draughtsman, working for him from 1764 until the late 1770s, when he began to practice on his own account.

E.5031-1910