A wonderful pair of elegant and decorative antique church candelabra. Made from spelter which has been gilded each one holds three candles with drip pans. They are designed with a central wheatsheaf, clusters of grapes on vine leaves and a fleur-de-lis pattern. The naturalistic styling—with curling vines, leaf details, and fruit clusters—was typical of 19th-century Romanticism and reflects the influence of the Baroque and Rococo revival movements.
History ~
1850 - 1890, France.
Originally made for display on a Church altar, candelabra such as these were designed with ecclesiastical symbolism and motifs in mind. The wheat sheaves symbolise the Eucharist and the bread of life, which represents Christ’s body but also the harvest. The grapes and vines refer to the wine of the sacrament, symbolic of Christ’s blood and divine abundance. They perfectly combine symbolic theology and decorative arts in a way which was characteristic of 19th century French Catholicism.
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