Product details

Seller's Notes:This is a moving sale! Pair Venetian style Blackamoor candleholders, bronze and ebony, each depicting a standing figure elaborately dressed with headdress and waistcoat, holding a candleholder, on platform base. Blackamoor figures have a long and interesting history dating back to the 17th century in Europe and more specifically in Venice, Italy. During this time, European society began to admire the stature and fighting ability of North African warriors. They were enlisted by wealthy European families and nobility as soldiers, personal bodyguards, and court bearers. Venetian sculptors soon began carving life-sized likenesses of them (known as "Blackamoors," a slang term of the time referring to any dark-skinned person) out of wood, typically in native dress, either standing to hold a candelabra, torcher, or jardinière or in a crouched position for use as a table, footstool, or cabinet. Other Italian sculptors soon followed suit. Blackamoor figures continued to be made throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. They experienced a resurgence in popularity during the mid-19th century as interest in the Baroque style and the Orient grew. Because of their long standing popularity many other materials, sizes and forms featuring Blackamoors can be found including candelabra, wall brackets, figurines, humidors and more.

Brand: Other

Collection: Antique/Vintage

Manufacturer Link: The Chelsea Antiques Building in New York City