Lot 328
  • 328

A silver-inlaid cast brass candlestick, North West Persia, mid-14th century

Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
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Description

  • brass and silver
of baluster form, the slightly waisted truncated conical base with a flattened drip-pan, the tall, narrow cylindrical neck with a broad concave section at its centre, the base incised with a calligraphic band between lobed roundels containing alternating birds or seated figures amongst a dense foliate ground, similar decoration on the band near the base and on protruding section to neck, repeating geometric designs near spout 

Condition

In good condition, some silver inlay missing, corrosion to surface inside base consistent with age, small crack between broad waisted neck piece and upper portion, as viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

inscriptions

Around the body in Kufic, repeat of possibly: al-daw[la] 
‘Wealth’

Around the base: A part of a hadith of the Prophet. 
The remaining undeciphered.

This tall and elegant candlestick belongs to a group of metalwork objects ascribed to a North Western Persian or eastern Anatolian provenance and dated to the fourteenth century. Particularly associated with the reign of the Ilkhanid Sultan Uljaytu (r.1304-17 AD) and the metalworking centres of Tabriz and Maragheh, a connection with regional rulers in Anatolia is not excluded, as well as influences from other metalworking centres such as Mosul and Baghdad. Comparable pieces are now in museum collections, and feature a similar style of decoration as on the present candlestick, notably interlacing roundels and alternate lotus-like palmettes and figures. The Musée du Louvre has two similarly shaped candlesticks, notably with a deeply-waisted body and straight-edged base, inv.no A 6930 and inv.no.OA 7530. The candlestick in the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Missouri, is dominated by a calligraphic band with comparable ornamental motifs in the background (illustrated in Pope and Ackerman 1938-9, p.1364). For an example of a candlestick with an added section such as on the present lot, see Pope and Ackerman 1938-89, p.1374. This socket extension is a form that was to become popular after the production of the present piece, found in both Persia, Iraq and India in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

A candlestick in the Musée de Lyon demonstrates the confluence of designs that are apparent here, employing the shape of Jaziran candlesticks of the thirteenth-fourteenth century, and motifs linked to Sultan Uljaytu’s reign (Allan, p.134, fig. 55; cf.no.37) and Ilkhanid patronage in north-west Persia in the fourteenth century. The squatting figures with voluminous trousers and birds with trailing tassles are also features consistent with chinoiserie elements found in the arts of the book and other decorative media of the late Ilkhanid period. The silver inlay too, whilst unusual, recalls the use of gold wire inlay found in other metalwork pieces.