Candelabrum Depicting an Allegorical Figure of Matrimony (c. 1775): Art, History and Details

Candelabrum Depicting an Allegorical Figure of Matrimony (c. 1775) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Derby Porcelain Factory (Chelsea-Derby Period, 1770–84).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

This allegorical figure depicts a shepherdess dressed in richly patterned garments. Here the figure (Matrimony) holds a birdcage in one hand and subtly directs the viewer’s gaze toward the sheep resting nearby with the other. An accompanying figure, a shepherd (Liberty) is joined by a dog and a bird that perches on his outstretched arm.

Object facts

• Title: Candelabrum Depicting an Allegorical Figure of Matrimony
• Date: c. 1775
• Creator attribution: Derby Porcelain Factory (Chelsea-Derby Period, 1770–84)
• Culture: England, London, Chelsea
• Type: Ceramic
• Technique: soft-paste porcelain
• Dimensions: Overall: 31.1 x 25.7 x 15.6 cm (12 1/4 x 10 1/8 x 6 1/8 in.)
• Collection: Decorative Arts
• Department: Decorative Art and Design
• Accession number: 1917.627.1

A detail from the museum

The canopy of foliage surrounding these figures was inspired by the arbors popular in theatrical stage designs during the mid-1700s.

Collection credit

Bequest of Mary Warden Harkness

Further reading listed by the museum

• "Bequest of Mrs. Charles W. Harkness." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 4, no. 4 (1917): 63.
• The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1925. Only Candelabrum with Shepherd and Dog (1917.627.2) reproduced.
• The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1928. Only Candelabrum with Shepherd and Dog (1917.627.2) reproduced.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.