Antique Silver Candlesticks , Silver Candelabra
Candelabra – table candlesticks with branches for extra lights – began to be made from c.1660 and increased in popularity, throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. A candelabrum consists of a central shaft with two or more detachable scroll branches supporting candle sockets; sometimes there is also a socket at the top of the shaft. Made in similar styles to candlesticks and by the scone makers, candelabra were likewise generally produced in pairs. Most found today, are in good condition, because they were better made and much more expensive than candlesticks and therefore were not subjected to the same amount of wear or damage.
THE EARLY 18TH CENTURY Silver Candelabra
Although examples are known from the late 17th century, few candelabra dating from before the 1770, survive today. Until the late 18th century most had two branches, but matching branches and stems were not particularly popular or fashionable until c.1750. As on candlesticks, detachable nozzles for the sockets appeared c.1740. To be of value to collectors, a candelabrum should have all its separate parts – the branches, the nozzle, and the stem – in the same style and hearing the same maker’s marks. Before -.1750 branches were often considered awkward and so were discarded and the stem used as a candlestick.
French silversmiths createdd some of the finest Rococo candelabra in the early and mid-18th century. One of the most famous examples is a single three-hranched candelabrum designed in 1734-5 by juste-Aarele Meissonnier (1695-1750), Royal Goldsmith to King Louis XV of France, and executed by Claude DLIVivicr (1688-1747) for the English Duke of Kingston. It has an extraordinary, asymmetrical, spiralling stem with three richly sculpted branches ending in flower-shaped sockets, and a cast finial in the form of a cluster of leaves, which can be removedto hold a fourth candle. Such pieces fully exploit the plastic, sculptural qualities of cast sib, er, and had a particular influence in England, where elaborate Rococo candelabra were made by such leading silversmiths as George Wickes ( 1698-11-61) and Paul de Lamerie (1688-1751) in the 1740s and 1750x. All such pieces are exceptionally rare and valuable today and fetch high prices on the market.
THE LATER 18TH CENTURY Silver Candelabra
In the early 18th century the hour for dining was generally about 3p.m., but lit the latter part of the century it was put back and the main meal of the day was often eaten after dark. For this reason, more light was needed, and so candelabra from the 1770s onward usually have at least three branches. Elegant and light Neo-classical forms, with fluted or plain tapering baluster stems, simple, slender branches, and urn-shaped sockets, all decorated with beading and reeding, were especially popular. Such designs were produced in cast and loaded sheet silver and Sheffield plate; some candelabra have silver stems but Sheffield plate branches, perhaps to reduce the cost. Similarly, candelabra made entirely in Sheffield plate often had a matching set of more expensive silver candlesticks.
THE EARLY 19TH CENTURY Silver Candelabra
Massive, heavy silver-gilt candelabra are characteristic of the Regency period. Made largely to impress, these often form part of elaborate table centrepieces. Magnificent candelabra were made by the leading English goldsmiths Rundell, Bridge & Rundell (est. 1805) and by Paul Story (1771-1844) for the Prince of NXiale, (later King George IV) and his circle. Such pieces – such as one made by Edward Farrell in I824 – have five or more branches, sometimes with double sockets, and stems lit the form of caryatids or mythological figures. Earlier candelabra were often altered to suit new tastes: a pair of candlesticks ordered by the Earl of Carlisle from the firm Parker & Wakelin (est. -.1758) in 1770 was supplemented with double branches in 1780 and triple branches in 1826.
THE LATER 19TH CENTURY Silver Candelabra
Most candelabra made in the later 19th century are of loaded sheet silver or plate, and many have figures supporting the candle sockets or as decoration on the base. After the introduction of oil lighting, some candelabra were converted to oil lamps. in the second half of the 19th century a huge range of items, including candelabra, was produced using the new method of electroplating. Following the invention of the electric battery in the early 19th century, an English doctor named John Wright experimented with electrolysis to coat the surface of base-metal objects with precious metal. In 1840 the Birmingham firm of Elkington & Co. (est. c.1830), in partnership with Wright, took out the first patent for this new process. Known as “electroplating”, it involved the immersion into a plating bath of a nickel object attached to a positive anode and a block of pure silver attached to a negative anode. When the electric current was switched on, silver particles passed through the solution and were deposited on the nickel object; the same process could be used both for gilding and for replacing worn objects.
The introduction of electroplating led quickly to the decline of the Sheffield-plate industry. The new process was far safer than the old one, but its main advantage was that it enabled objects to be formed entirely by traditional silversmithing methods before being plated, making complex sculptural ornament possible. By comparison,handles and borders made in Sheffield plate had to be silver. Condition Is important stamped out from sheet silver, filled with lead, and applied.
Elkington & Co. and the marm, other electroplate manufacturers established in the 1850s and 1860s produced a huge range of electroplated items, from chargers, ewers, and centrepieces richly decorated with valuable ornament in various historical styles to cutlery, frames, and spoon-warmers. Elkington employed the French sculptor Leonard Morel-l.aclertil ( 1820— ) to design splendid Renaissance-style pieces for display at international exhibitions. The firm also used the process of electrotyping - taking a mould front an object and depositing onto it a thin layer of silver, backed with base metal - to produce facsimile copies of a number of historically important pieces of silverware, in particular a collection of Tudor and Jacobean silver held in the Kremlin Armoury in Moscow.
Since such large quantities of electroplate still exist, it is important to buy pieces in the very best condition. Electroplate can usually be distinguished from Sheffield plate by the harsher colour of the pure silver (the sterling standard was used in Sheffield plate) and the lack of visible series, and joins, which are hidden by the layer of deposited silver.