Illus. 333.—Chippendale
Candle-stand, 1760-1770.
Both the screen and the candle-stand in the illustration are made of mahogany. The candlestick upon the stand is a curious one, of brass, with a socket for the candle set upon an adjustable arm, which also slides upon a slender rod, which is fastened into the heavily weighted standard. Both screen and candle-stand were made in the latter half of the eighteenth century. Candle-stands were designed by all the great cabinet-makers, and in those days of candlelight they were a useful piece of furniture.
A candle-stand in the finest Chippendale style is shown in Illustration [333]. It is one of a pair owned by Harry Harkness Flagler, Esq. The intention was presumably that a candle-stand with candelabrum should be placed at each side of the mantel. A pair of candle-stands similar to this are in the banquet hall at Mount Vernon, and are among the few pieces of furniture there which are authenticated as having been in use during Washington’s occupancy of the house. The candle-stand in the illustration is forty-two inches high, and its proportions are beautiful. The legs and the ball at the base of the fluted pillar are very finely carved. The legs end in the French foot, the scroll turning forward, which was such a favorite with Chippendale. The top is carved out so that there is a raised rim, like that upon the “dish-top” table in Illustration [246].
The first recorded instance in this country of lighting by artificial gas is in 1806, when David Melville of Newport, Rhode Island, succeeded in manufacturing gas, and illuminated his house and grounds with it. In 1822 Boston was lighted by gas, but it did not come into general use for lighting until 1840-1850.
Illus. 334.—Bronze Mantel Lamps, 1815-1840.
During the second quarter of the nineteenth century it was fashionable to use candelabra and lamps which were hung with cut-glass prisms. Sets of candelabra for the mantel were very popular, consisting of a three-branched candelabrum for the middle and a single light for each side. The base was usually of marble, and the gilt standard was cast in different shapes,—of a shepherd and shepherdess, a group of maidens, or a lady clad in the costume of the day. From an ornament at the base of the candle, shaped like an inverted crown, hung sparkling prisms, catching the light as they quivered with every step across the room. A handsome set of these is shown in Illustration [318] upon the mantel.
Illus. 335.—Brass Gilt Candelabra, 1820-1849.
Illustration [334] shows a set of mantel lamps of bronze, mounted upon marble bases and hung with cut-glass prisms. The reservoir for the oil is beneath the long prisms. This set is owned by Francis H. Bigelow, Esq.