Lot 142
142
A PAIR OF GEORGE III ORMOLU AND BRONZE GRIFFIN CANDLESTICKS

LATE 18TH CENTURY

Details
A PAIR OF GEORGE III ORMOLU AND BRONZE GRIFFIN CANDLESTICKS
LATE 18TH CENTURY
The nozzles replaced; together with a Paris porcelain and bardiglio marble inkstand
The candlesticks: 8 ¾ in. (22 in.) high
The inkstand: 6 ¼ in. (16 cm.) high; 8 ½ in. (21.5 cm.) wide; 5 ¼ in. (13.5 cm.) deep
Provenance
The candlesticks: almost certainly the one of the two pairs with identical nozzles sold Christie's, London, 5 April 2001, lot 2.

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Lot Essay

A related design for a griffin candlestick was illustrated by Sir William Chambers in the third edition of his Treatise on Civil Architecture in 1791. The design is an additional plate illustrating 'ornamental utensils, designed for the Earl of Charlemont, for Lord Melbourne, and for some decorations for my own house'. Matthew Boulton made several 'griffin' vases and it is possible that Chambers provided him with the design or model (N. Goodison, Matthew Boulton: Ormolu, London, 2002, pp. 40-41 & 85-86, pls. 13-14 & 48-50).
A very similar example was sold from the Humphery Whitbread Collection, Christie's, London, 5 April 2001, lot 352.

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