Candlestick from an altar set for offerings
This set of gilt and enamel cloisonné vessels is comprised of an incense burner in the center flanked by pairs of candlesticks and flower vases. These types of vessels were used—in various religions—to hold offerings on altars. They would have been lined up on the altar table in a temple, an imperial mausoleum or for ancestor worship as displaying here.
The set exemplifies Chinese ritual objects that were modeled with fine artisanship after ancient sacred bronzes. The lidded burner derives from the food tripod known as ding, and the flower vases take the form of a gu, or wine goblet.
Ella Anna Loose (née Clark, 1860-1945), Kansas City, MO, and Washington, DC, by 1945 [1];
Her bequest to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1945.
NOTES:
[1] Ella Loose was a charismatic philanthropist who is best known today for donating Loose Park to Kansas City in 1927 in remembrance of her late husband, Jacob Leander Loose (1850-1923), founder of the Loose-Wiles Biscuit company (later Sunshine Biscuits). Ella Loose spent the winters in Washington, DC, where she was a popular member of the social scene. She gave some of her impressive collection of jewelry, art, and furnishings to the Nelson-Atkins, many of which she collected during her travels around the world.
