Chandelier, 1887–1912, National Museum of Lithuania, IM-5101. Photo by Kęstutis Stoškus, 2017 Fragment of chandelier, 1887–1912, National Museum of Lithuania, IM-5101. Photo by Kęstutis Stoškus, 2017

National Museum of Lithuania

Inv. No. IM-5101

Address: Arsenalo str. 1, Vilnius

Time of origin: 1887–1912

Place of origin: Poland

Material, Technique: bronze, brass tin: casting, repoussé, cutting, cizeling; remains of gilding

Dimensions: height – 65 cm, diameter – 26 cm

The bowl-type chandelier preserved in the National Museum of Lithuania was made at the turn of the 19th – 20th century. The serial edition Katalog zabytków sztuki w Polsce (2000) published almost identical bowl-type chandelier from the St. Vincent de Paul church in Krakow that was made in the same workshops [1]. The chandelier, preserved in Lithuania, as well as the mentioned ware from Poland, reflects the period of production of inexpensive, dowdy and low-quality wares as a result of the industrial revolution.

The bowl and finial * of the chandelier have features of the neo-Empire, the arms of the neo-Rococo and the sconces — the elements of art nouveau style. The arms and chains of the ware are cast. The rosette on the top and lace on the sconces, drip pans and bowl, are done by repoussé. Excessive and incoherent ornamentation prevails in the ware.

Although the chandelier is not of great artistic value, it is a reflection of the inexpensive industrial production and consumer culture that predominated in the second half of the 19th century.

* Finial [in Latin finire means to end or to complete] — lilac blossom, bud or draped vase-shape decoration used in the decoration in architecture and furniture. Bulb, fruit, leaves or flower bouquet — decoration of the same purpose — is also called finial [1]. Žr. Dailės žodynas, Vilnius: Vilniaus dailės akademijos leidykla, 1999, p. 125.

Literature and sources:
  1. Katalog zabytków sztuki w Polsce. Tom IV. Miasto Kraków. Część VIII. Kleparz kościoły i klasztory. Warszawa: Instytut sztuki polskiej akademii nauk, 2000, p. 44, fig. 350.
  2. Kačinskienė Klaudija, Mažeikienė Ona, XVI–XX a. pr. apšvietimo priemonės, Vilnius: Lietuvos TSR istorijos ir etnografijos muziejus, 1980, p. 34.
  3. Valtaitė-Gagač Alantė, XVII a.–XX a. 4 dešimtmečio sietynų paveldas Lietuvoje: Daktaro disertacija, Vilnius: Vilniaus dailės akademija, 2015, p. 226.