A Large Brass Candlestick, Khurasan, circa 1200

the base of truncated conical form with chevron pattern, studded with rosettes in the spandrels, concave shoulder with a calligraphic inscription around the rim interspersed with 6-petalled rosettes, the slender neck surmounted by a bulbous candleholder decorated with a broad band of floral and animal motifs

With the exception of the neck and socket, this extraordinary piece is hammered out of a single sheet of brass. An usual feature is the addition of small repoussé high-relief elements forming inscriptions and leonine heads, rivetted to the shoulder and upper and lower parts of the drum. 

Large-scale candlesticks of this type are rare. Related examples are in the Freer Gallery, Washington (Atil 1985, no.13, pp.95-101), the Louvre, Paris (ibid., fig.36, p.98), the Museum of Islamic Art, Cairo (ibid., fig.37, p.99), the al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait (ibid., fig.38, p.99) and the David Collection, Copenhagen (von Folsach 2001, no.480, p.305).  Of these, the David Collection example is probably the closest in design, though the remarkable feature of the present example is the bold chevron pattern which is skillfully adapted to the tapering form.