Baraffael Family Hanukkah Lamp
Gaspare Vanneschi
1773–75 · Silver, embossed, engraved, punched; soft wood back support · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
This rare and sumptuous silver lamp was commissioned by the wealthy Baraffael family in Rome. Their crest, a rooster grasping a stalk of wheat, is embossed near the top. A tipped oil jug and a lit nine-stem candelabrum known as a hanukiah suggest the lamp’s use during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. The bees circling the jug are a moving tribute to one of the family members, Deborah (Hebrew for "bee"), who died in 1763.
- Artist
- Gaspare Vanneschi
- Date
- 1773–75
- Medium
- Silver, embossed, engraved, punched; soft wood back support
- Culture
- Italian, Rome
- Department
- European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
- Credit line
- Purchase, Acquisitions Fund, Friends of European Sculpture and Decorative Arts Gifts, Renée E. and Robert A. Belfer, Leon D. and Debra R. Black, Betsy and Ed Cohen/Arete, Mr. and Mrs. Mark Fisch, Álvaro Saieh Bendeck, Ruth and Andrew Suzman, Ann Tenenbaum and Thomas H. Lee, and Merryl H. and James S. Tisch Gifts, 2018
