Candelabrum (one of a pair) 1767 - 1768

This silver candelabrum was crafted by Robert Joseph Auguste in France, a country synonymous with luxury and refinement. Imagine this object in a grand Parisian salon, reflecting candlelight onto mirrored walls and illuminating the faces of aristocrats engaged in witty conversation. Auguste was silversmith to King Louis XVI, and his designs embody the Neoclassical style favored by the French elite. The candelabrum’s motifs, such as the acanthus leaves and fluted columns, evoke ancient Greece and Rome, connecting the monarchy to an imperial past. Consider the social conditions that made such an object possible; the vast inequalities of wealth and power in pre-revolutionary France. Luxury goods reinforced class boundaries, and the candelabrum's gleaming surface speaks to the opulence enjoyed by a select few. To fully understand this piece, we might look to inventories of aristocratic households, and study the history of the guilds that regulated artistic production. These resources help us interpret the candelabrum not just as a beautiful object, but as a potent symbol of a society on the brink of transformation.