Pair of candlesticks

In the era before gas lighting and electricity, candles played a principal role in illuminating the domestic interior. The number of candles lit was an indication of the wealth and status of the owner: beeswax candles burned clean, had a pleasant smell, but were quite expensive compared to those made of tallow.



In late seventeenth-century France, a change in dining habits had a significant effect on the production of silver candlesticks. Entertainment was increasingly orientated towards the evening and elegant lighting became an important part of the interior decoration.



This pair of candlesticks, made in Paris in 1729-30 by Gilles-Claude Gouel clearly indicates the longevity of certain design elements. The angled baluster with shell ornament is like the ornament found more than thirty years later on another pair of candlesticks in the Museum’s collection (58,50.3,.4.).