Taperstick 1782 - 1783

Curator: This elegant piece is a silver taperstick, crafted between 1782 and 1783. Notice its delicate construction. Editor: It feels like a precious, self-contained universe. A miniature world meant to illuminate a single, specific point – literally, the tip of a taper. Does anyone use these anymore? Curator: Doubtful! A taperstick was essential in a time before electric lighting, used for tasks requiring concentrated light – sealing letters, perhaps, or close needlework. It speaks to a different pace of life, doesn't it? Notice the detail around the edges. This object is currently held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Editor: Definitely a different pace. And consider the material. Silver suggests luxury, doesn’t it? This wasn’t mass-produced. The craftsmanship here really elevates a utilitarian object to an art form. Look at the way the handle is fashioned – it's almost floral! The whole thing is undeniably bougie. Curator: Precisely. And I think the choice of silver goes beyond mere luxury; it’s about reflecting and amplifying the light, a way to truly maximize the glow from that single flame. A material that works for you. Editor: Work, indeed. One has to imagine the silversmith and their process—the laborious crafting of each detail, the shaping, hammering, polishing. What sort of labour practices where present when it was created, where was the material acquired? You know, someone actually touched and toiled to bring it into existence. Now it sits encased, so far removed from that reality. It also makes you question how someone wealthy engaged with their tapers, you know. I imagine they were probably engaging in boudoir activities such as writing in their diary. Curator: It's a potent reminder, isn't it? About lost ways and found contexts, which helps keep it timeless! So much is buried within its polished form. Editor: That's right; it speaks quietly to the way light, labor, and leisure intertwined, back then. Curator: Indeed, it whispers stories, which in turn help us shape new reflections. Editor: Maybe someday the AI will light our future.