Pair of piano candlesticks
ca. 1784
Medium
Sheffield plate
Dimensions
Height (each): 4 3/16 in. (10.6 cm)
Classification
Metalwork-Silverplate
Culture
British
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Frances and Edward Munves, 1964
Accession Number
64.187.2a, b, .3a, b
Art Historical Context
These delicate **Pair of Piano Candlesticks**, crafted by N. Smith and. around 1784, exemplify the ingenuity of British metalwork during the late Georgian era. Standing just 4 3/16 inches (10.6 cm) tall, these petite silverplate treasures were designed to perch on pianos or harpsichords, sheet music for evening recitals in fashionable homes. Produced in Sheffield, England—the epicenter of innovative plating techniques—they reflect the growing popularity of domestic music-making among the rising middle class. The medium, Sheffield plate, was a groundbreaking 18th-century innovation, fusing a t...