Pair Of Chased And Engraved Bronze Candlesticks, Regency Period, Circa 1725–1735.

Elegant pair of Regence period candlesticks, in finely chased and silvered bronze, presenting a slender silhouette and a remarkable quality of engraving and chasing. The circular base with scalloped contours, rests on an ogee base decorated with foliage and scrolls, while the shaft has canted sides decorated with cartouches with shell motifs and interlacing. The bobèche, hexagonal in shape, is engraved with bunches of grapes and stylized garlands, in a spirit already close to the emerging Louis XV style. These candlesticks present an ornamental composition halfway between Regence and the first developments of rocaille, with a virtuosity of engraving and chasing characteristic of the beautiful productions of the first third of the 18th century. Under the base is an unidentified hallmark in the form of a tilted escutcheon, with the letters A . B, a crescent moon and two stars. This is most likely a silvering hallmark affixed in the 19th or early 20th century, during an old re-silvering. The setting is nevertheless entirely 18th century, without modern reworking. A similar model in solid silver signed Antoine VI Hannappier around 1742–44, kept at the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Orléans, is published by Isabelle Klinka-Ballesteros in Les orfèvres d'Orléans (ed. Somogy, 2003, p. 188) Perfect general condition, homogeneous silvering with a beautiful shiny patina. No deformation, wear from use on the engraving. Dimensions: Height: 25.5 cm