Candlestick

CultureTurkish

Dateca. mid-late 13th century

MediumBrass with silver

DimensionsOverall: 9 3/8 × 8 5/16 inches (23.81 × 21.11 cm)

Credit LinePurchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust

Object number51-6

On View

Not on view

Collections

South and Southeast Asian Art

Terms

Gallery Label

Islamic metalwork is famous for its high degree of craftsmanship and detail, as evident in this ornate candlestick. Its wide, concave base is decorated with inlaid silver: elongated Arabic calligraphy set against a field of scrolling vines — an artistic motif known as arabesque. Such candlesticks were originally used to illuminate sacred spaces, mosques and tombs, as well as secular domestic spaces. They also became favored objects of Western collectors and artists. Islamic metalwork, including hookahs (a water pipe) and weapons, are prominently displayed in Gérôme’s paintings hanging nearby.

Provenance

H. Bensilum, by February 1947-1951 [1];

Purchased from Bensilum, through the dealer Adrienne Minassian (1913-1994), New York, by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1951 [2].

NOTES:

[1] John Hay Library, Brown University, Providence, RI, Adrienne Minassian Collection of Arabic and Persian Leaves, A98.3, box 14, account book, p. 4-5, copy in Nelson-Atkins curatorial file. This candlestick was lent by Bensilum to the Exposition d'art Musulman, Musée Arabe, Cairo, February-March 1947, no. 55.

[2] Adrienne Minassian is the daughter of Kirkor Minassian (1883-1944), dealer in Islamic and Near Eastern antiquities with galleries located in New York and Paris and active between approximately 1900 and 1944.

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