A Pair of Large Late Gothic Wrought-Iron Floor-Standing Pricket Candlesticks
- Period
- 1400–1500
- Origin
- Northern Europe, possibly the Low Countries or Germany
- Dimensions
- W 15 1/2"" × H 67 3/4"" × D 16""
- Reference
- #Marh3852
Price on application
Description
A pair of substantial late Gothic wrought-iron floor-standing pricket candlesticks, each formed with a tall, slender upright shaft rising from a quadripartite base of four gracefully curved and widely splayed legs, terminating in flattened feet. The shafts extend upwards into elongated, tapering prickets, with a small forged collar marking the transition between the principal stem and the upper section.
The construction is characterised by an economy of form, relying upon the proportions of the upright shafts and the sweeping curvature of the supporting legs rather than applied ornament. The iron retains an extensively oxidised surface, with irregularities characteristic of hand-forged metalwork.
Standing approximately 172 cm high, the candlesticks belong to the tradition of large-scale medieval lighting furnishings employed in ecclesiastical and ceremonial interiors. Such candlesticks could be positioned beside altars, devotional images or funerary biers, where their elevated prickets supported substantial candles
The restrained design, elongated prickets and sweeping configuration of the four supporting legs are consistent with late medieval wrought-iron furnishings.
The close correspondence between the general form of the present candlesticks and those illustrated in the Sheriff Chiche Hours suggests that this structural tradition was already established by the beginning of the fifteenth century.
Although precise regional attribution remains uncertain, the pair may be considered within the wider traditions of Northern European ironwork, particularly those of the Low Countries and German-speaking regions.
A fifteenth-century date is proposed on stylistic and comparative grounds, with the possibility of manufacture during the first half of the century.
The final image illustrates a funeral scene from the Sheriff Chiche Hours, circa 1390–1410, produced in Bruges and London, depicting a pair of standing candlesticks of closely comparable form.
