Candelabrum
Candelabrum is a Roman art sculpture from the 2nd century AD. It is made of white marble with a height of 270cm. You can find it in Salone of the Borghese Gallery in Rome.
History
The restoration of this work by Antonio D’Este in different stages is recorded by Evasio Gozzani’s letters and payments.
In the “Quinta Nota degli Oggetti antichi provenienti dalla Villa Borghese”, the height of the candelabrum is given as thirteen spans.
This candelabrum, composed of antique fragments and modern additions, was made in the 19th century as a pendant to the previous one, which, in the mid-19th century, was located in the portico. The latter’s drum with fluting is imitated in the present candelabrum, which is situated between a frieze with scroll ornaments and the fascia with masks and lions.
Description
The authentic part is generated by the monolithic detail located above the modern fascia with a meander: from the bottom, it comprises a circular cornice consisting of a fillet, a double cyma, and another fillet; then, there is the drum tapering upwards with deep fluting and a second cornice with a fillet, a cyma reverse, and another fillet.
This is the lower part of the candelabrum, simulated by one of the modern drums of the other candelabrum, situated on the opposite side of the entrance door
Analysis
The only unquestionably antique parts comprise the fascia decorated with acanthus scrolls and foliage and the shaft with stridulation located between two wreaths of leaves facing upwards. While there are no apparent parallels for the drum with scroll ornaments, the twisted shaft detailed with acanthus leaves is similar to those in two candelabra, datable to the 1st or 2nd centuries AD, in the Lever Collection at Port Sunlight, the shafts of which, decorated with ivy leaves, are placed between the whorls of foliage.
There is a chance that the antique sections of both candelabra belonged to the same original one, which was dismantled to get independent decorative elements.
Author: Roman Art
Roman art refers to the visual arts made in Ancient Rome and the territories of the Roman Empire. It includes architecture, painting, sculpture, and mosaic work. Luxury objects in metal-work, gem engraving, ivory carvings, and glass are sometimes considered in modern terms to be minor forms of Roman art, but this would not necessarily have been the case for contemporaries. The sculpture was perhaps considered the highest form of art by Romans, but figure painting was also highly regarded.
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