A Pair of Carved Giltwood 'Torchères Aux Dauphins'

Object Description

A Pair of Carved Giltwood ‘Torchères Aux Dauphins’

A rare and magnificent pair of torchères carved from solid wood, entirely gilded, rising from a tripartite base formed of addorsed and intertwined dolphins gathered around the central clustered column, with a further trio of mythical dolphins flanking carved shells to each side; the whole tapering towards the platform top.
French, circa 1885

A variation of the famous ‘torchères aux dauphins’ first appearing in the 17th and 18th centuries, this pair shares the same recognizable structure. A pair can be seen at Belvoir Castle, the stately home used as the set for Netflix’s hit-series The Crown, where the torchères share the screen with the monarch.

Object Literature

Cailleux, J., Étienne Lévy, J. Nicolier, and Stéphane Faniel. Le XVIII siècle français. Paris: Hachette, 1956, p. 150 (fig. D), illustrating a single example.

Object Condition

Excellent condition

Object Details