A pair of mid-century mercury glass candlesticks whose silvering has aged to a warm champagne gold \u2014 the kind of tarnish that would be impossible to fake and heartbreaking to polish away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These appeared on the Sunday brocante here in L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, on a dealer’s table wedged between a box of old postcards from Marseille and a broken ormolu mantel clock. The dealer \u2014 a retired schoolteacher who sells on Sundays for the pleasure of the conversation \u2014 said they came from a hotel particulier in Avignon that had been divided into apartments in the 1980s. Whether that’s precisely true is anyone’s guess, but the quality of the glass supports the story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mercury glass \u2014 or silvered glass \u2014 is double-walled blown glass with a silver nitrate solution sealed between the layers. It was never actually mercury, despite the name. Over time, the silvering oxidises and develops patches of warm amber, pale gold, and soft bronze that shift depending on the light. These two have tarnished at slightly different rates, which makes them feel like siblings rather than twins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One candlestick has minor silvering loss at the base \u2014 a small area where the interior coating has flaked, creating a clear window through to the outer glass. It’s visible only from below and adds to the character rather than diminishing it. Both hold standard taper candles securely. They look extraordinary lit \u2014 the flame multiplies in the silvered interior and throws a soft, diffuse glow that no solid candlestick can replicate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Set them on a dinner table, a mantelpiece, or a bathroom shelf where the candlelight will play off tile and mirror. They want a pair of good beeswax tapers and a long evening.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A pair of mid-century mercury glass candlesticks whose silvering has aged to a warm champagne gold \u2014 the kind of tarnish that would be impossible to fake and heartbreaking to polish away. These appeared on the Sunday brocante here in L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, on a dealer’s table wedged between a box of old postcards from Marseille and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":63,"template":"","meta":{"price_eur":155,"dimensions":"24 cm H \u00d7 9 cm base dia. (each)","condition":"Good \u2014 original tarnished patina, minor silvering loss on one base","story":"Found at the Sunday brocante in L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, on a table between a box of old postcards and a broken mantel clock. The dealer said they came from a hotel particulier in Avignon. The silver has tarnished to a warm champagne gold that catches candlelight beautifully.","category":"glass"},"objet_category":[],"class_list":["post-61","clouet_objet","type-clouet_objet","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cliffsnow.vagabond.andreidraganescu.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/objets\/61","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cliffsnow.vagabond.andreidraganescu.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/objets"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cliffsnow.vagabond.andreidraganescu.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/clouet_objet"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cliffsnow.vagabond.andreidraganescu.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/63"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cliffsnow.vagabond.andreidraganescu.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=61"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"objet_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cliffsnow.vagabond.andreidraganescu.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fobjet_category&post=61"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}