Candlestick: Olympian Deities and the Labors of Hercules
Called à la romaine (in the Roman manner), candlesticks with a high vertical stem were among several types made in Limoges enamels. The originality of this piece lies in its large base with raised oval medallions. The twelve roundels at the base depict Olympian gods and goddesses alternating with six of the labors of Hercules. The gods and goddesses derive from prints by Étienne Delaune, while the labors of Hercules were painted after engravings by Heinrich Aldegrever from 1550. It is very likely that a second candlestick completed the iconographic program with the six remaining labors of Hercules and a different set of gods and goddesses. The candlestick is signed IC, in gold, inside the foot.
Source: Vignon, Charlotte. The Frick Collection Decorative Arts Handbook. New York: The Frick Collection/Scala, 2015.
Debruge-Duménil, Paris. His sale, January 23 et seq., 1850, Hôtel des Ventes, Paris, Lot 739. Hollingworth Magniac, London. His sale, July 2 et seq., 1892, Christie’s, Lot 400. John E. Taylor, London. His sale, July 2, 1912, Christie’s, Lot 140. J. Pierpont Morgan, London and New York. Duveen. Frick, 1918.
Source: Enamels, Rugs and Silver in The Frick Collection. Volume VIII. New York: The Frick Collection, 1977.
