Twelve-light candelabrum

Matthew Boulton|John S. Hunt|Robert Garrard I

1805/6 · Silver · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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.

Artist

Matthew Boulton|John S. Hunt|Robert Garrard I

Date

1805/6

Medium

Silver

Culture

British, Birmingham

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

Bequest of Rupert L. Joseph, 1959