Early 17th-Century Italian Brass Pricket Candlesticks

A monumental pair of Renaissance ecclesiastical brass pricket candlesticks of exceptional size and presence. Each candlestick is finely cast with a bold tiered circular base supporting an elongated baluster stem, swelling into pronounced vase-shaped knops, and surmounted by broad drip pans with wrought-iron prickets.
Their impressive height (38¾ inches) and heavy construction indicate their original function as altar candlesticks within a major Italian church or monastic foundation. The rich golden patina of the cast brass, together with the sculptural strength of the design, reflects the sophistication of North Italian metalwork in the decades around 1600.
Comparable examples remain in situ in Tuscan and Lombard churches, commissioned for ceremonial display and often produced in pairs. The survival of such a large and matching pair is rare, particularly with their integrity of form and surface preserved. One candlestick bears a later inscription dated 1764, likely an ecclesiastical inventory mark rather than the date of manufacture.