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https://www.decorativecollective.com/dealers/leslie-baggottFrench Louis XVI style ormolu candlestick after a model by Jean-Démosthène Dugourc
A gadrooned urned shaped candle holder with lion masks and paw feet on a stem with four caryatids standing on a circular plinth with a laurel border above a cast acanthus base and circular fluted plinth.
French, circa 1830
The candlestick 38cm H, 16cm W, 16cm D.
The candlestick corresponds to a design by Jean-Démosthène Dugourc, shown in a watercolour drawing of his, dated 1790, in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs [inv. no. G F 21 no. 38.378], see the additional image. Candlesticks of the same design are held by the Wallace Collection [F174].
This candlestick has a variant design of the candle holder, or nozzle, it also has four co-joined caryatids to the central column, where others have only three, but the overall design is similar uniformly with the splayed acanthus base. The design is 18th century however this candlestick was made in the early 19th century, the quality of the casting and the figures is very good (later versions appear and it is noticeable that the quality of the figures and casting is not as precise). Variants appear in different sizes, this one is larger than most at 38cm H, a large scale imposing candlestick that could be converted to a lamp without altering or damaging the originality of the candlestick. Presented in excellent original condition retaining original gilding.
Caryatid, in classical Greek architecture, refers to a female figure used as a column support. The high stylobate of the south porch of the Erechtheion in Athens is supported by 6 maidens, or Caryatids, it is an ancient Greek Ionic temple on the north side of the Acropolis, which was primarily dedicated to the goddess Athena. Caryatides is the first use of the term in Latin and transliterates the Greek word meaning "maidens of Caryae."