Twelve-light candelabrum

1805/6

Not on view

Matthew Boulton, one of the fathers of the industrial revolution, established a manufactory in Birmingham to produce silver, ormolu, plate, coins, medals. He also entered into partnership with James Watt to produce the first commercial steam engines. This massive candelabra is based on a Roman triumphal column in Alexandria known as the column of Pompey. It bears the arms of Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, who became the colonel of the 15th Light Dragoons in 1802, which probably commissioned this candelabra as a gift.

Artwork Details

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Title: Twelve-light candelabrum
Maker: Matthew Boulton (British, Birmingham 1728–1809 Birmingham)
Maker: sockets by Robert Garrard I (active 1780–1818)
Maker: sockets by John S. Hunt (entered 1844)
Date: 1805/6
Culture: British, Birmingham
Medium: Silver
Dimensions: Overall: 45 1/2 × 25 1/2 in. (115.6 × 64.8 cm)
Classification: Metalwork-Silver
Credit Line: Bequest of Rupert L. Joseph, 1959
Object Number: 60.55.9a–ee
Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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