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Candlestick
Pierre Massé (French, active 1639–after 1690)
French (Paris)
1675–76
Object Place: Europe, Paris, France
Medium/Technique
Metal; silver
Dimensions
17.5 x 12.4 cm (6 7/8 x 4 7/8 in.)
Credit Line
Elizabeth Parke Firestone and Harvey S. Firestone, Jr. Collection
Accession Number1993.461.1
CollectionsEurope
ClassificationsSilver
DescriptionOne of a pair of cluster column candlesticks. The square bases have chased bands of putti, vases, satyr masks, and scrollwork on a matted ground which rises to a square drip pan with similar decoration. The square, slightly tapered stem is deeply fluted twice on each side and has a triple band of molding just above the drip pan and a single band approximately halfway up the stem. The rim of the candle socket has chased floral and mask decoration similar to the base and drip pan.
Marks
Maker's Mark: a crowned fleur-de-lis, two grains, PM, two crossed maces (Nocq,211). Warden's Mark: 1675-1676: a crowned G (Dennis, 353). Charge mark: 1672- 1677: a crowned A with three fleurs-de-lis (Dennis, 351). Other: Countermark used after 1838: parts of insects (Rosenberg, 5929); a small rectangle with ET inside (Tardy, p. 181); 19th C. Italian countermarks: a crowned cross in an oval and a bull's head, Rosenberg 7472,and 7476. The Maker's , Warden's, and Charge Marks are all on the underside of the base, the maker's mark is also on the stem. The Italian marks are on the underside of the base.
Provenance1923, Leon Helft; 1925, Sold to Junius Spencer Morgan, Paris; 1939, Jacques Helft card index; 1963, Sale of H.S. Morgan, Christie's May 1963, lot 107 pl. XXIII; Elizabeth Parke Firestone (1897-1990) and Harvey S. Firestone, Jr. (1898-1973), Akron, OH and Newport, RI; 1993; gift of the Estate of Elizabeth Parke Firestone and Harvey S. Firestone, Jr. to the MFA.