Antique French Bronze Candlestick with Octagonal Base, 1700s

Details

Description

A fine early 18th-century French bronze candlestick with a stepped octagonal base, a ringed baluster stem and a tall cylindrical … Read more A fine early 18th-century French bronze candlestick with a stepped octagonal base, a ringed baluster stem and a tall cylindrical socket with the characteristic side opening. The bronze has a deep, dark-brown patina with golden light on the high points, a surface that has built up slowly over almost 300 years and that collectors of early metalwork value above anything else.

The side hole in the socket is a lovely period detail. It allowed the owner to push out the last stub of a candle with a small stick, and it is typical of candlesticks made in France and the Low Countries between the late 17th century and about 1730. The octagonal foot, with its wide flat drip tray and sharply stepped profile, belongs to the same period, the transition from Louis XIV to Régence. It gives the piece a strong, silhouette, heavy and stable, with a beautiful play of light on the facets.

This is a candlestick for people who like objects with a story: at home on a Louis XIV or Régence commode, on an old oak table, on a mantelpiece or in a bookcase. It is equally strong in a contemporary interior, where the dark bronze and the pure geometric shape sit well with plaster, linen, stone and wood. Grouped with other antique candlesticks of different heights you get the curated, collected look that designers such as Axel Vervoordt and Robert Kime are known for.

Measurements: height 15 cm (5.9 in), width of the octagonal base 16.5 cm (6.5 in).

Condition: very good antique condition. Superb original patina, light wear consistent with age and use. Stable and ready to use. See less