Flambeaux à pieds carrés
Candlestick
c.1774-c.1775 (made)
c.1774-c.1775 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Not many candlesticks in porcelain have survived and these are consequently rare objects made by Sèvres, the most prestigious French porcelain factory owned by the king. They have been modelled as miniature barley-sugar twist columns and decorated in a light and feminine style with spiralling garlands of flowers. Similar items appear in contemporary paintings and prints showing wealthy noblewomen in their boudoirs. It is easy to imagine these candlesticks, sitting on the dressing table of one such lady, flanking a mirror and an array of matching Sèvres porcelain lidded pots containing different types of creams and make-up. Candlesticks called flambeaux à colonnes and bougeoirs de toilette appear in the Sèvres factory records in 1773 and 1774 respectively, and may denote candlesticks of this shape. Another pair with similar mounts, decorated with turquoise ground ribbons and colourful flowers, is in the Rothschild Collection at Waddesdon Manor (National Trust).
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
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| Title | Flambeaux à pieds carrés (manufacturer's title) |
| Materials and techniques | soft-paste porcelain, painted in enamels and gilt, mounted in gilt bronze |
| Brief description | Candlestick with a barley sugar twist column and square foot, made from porcelain painted with floral decoration in enamels, with gilt-bronze mounts, Sèvres porcelain factory, France, about 1774-1775. |
| Physical description | Candlestick made from soft-paste porcelain, 'flambeaux à pieds carrés', with a barley sugar twist column form and square foot. The polychrome floral swag painted enamel decoration follows the form of the barley sugar twist. The square base is painted in blue with gilded detailing. There are tooled gilt-bronze mounts to the rim, the base of the column, and the base of the candlestick, attached with a four-petalled flower nut at the base. The candlestick and its pair have breaks, possibly technical faults, at each side along the length of the barley sugar twists. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Bequeathed by John Jones |
| Object history | John Jones Bequest, Catalogue number 155. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Not many candlesticks in porcelain have survived and these are consequently rare objects made by Sèvres, the most prestigious French porcelain factory owned by the king. They have been modelled as miniature barley-sugar twist columns and decorated in a light and feminine style with spiralling garlands of flowers. Similar items appear in contemporary paintings and prints showing wealthy noblewomen in their boudoirs. It is easy to imagine these candlesticks, sitting on the dressing table of one such lady, flanking a mirror and an array of matching Sèvres porcelain lidded pots containing different types of creams and make-up. Candlesticks called flambeaux à colonnes and bougeoirs de toilette appear in the Sèvres factory records in 1773 and 1774 respectively, and may denote candlesticks of this shape. Another pair with similar mounts, decorated with turquoise ground ribbons and colourful flowers, is in the Rothschild Collection at Waddesdon Manor (National Trust). |
| Associated object | 802-1882 (Pair) |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 802A-1882 |
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| Record created | June 7, 2004 |
| Record URL |
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