Pair of Altar Candlesticks
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.Unusual and complex iconography distinguishes these candlesticks. On one are personifications of the continents, each holding a fragment of the disk representing Earth and a second attribute: Europa is armed with a sword and shield (war); Asia bears a receptacle representing wealth; Africa holds the book of science. The figures on the other candlestick bear allegories of medicine (a vase), conflict (two fighting snakes), and theory and practice (two busts of young men). The allegories may collectively evoke the totality of the universe.
Artwork Details
- Title: Pair of Altar Candlesticks
- Date: ca. 1160
- Culture: Mosan region
- Medium: Cast copper alloy, engraved, chiseled, and gilded, with niello (?) and traces of silver
- Dimensions: Height each: 9 7/16 in. (24 cm)
- Classification: Metalwork-Copper alloy
- Credit Line: Dom-Museum Hildesheim (DS 22a–b)
- Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters