Lot 379
Hanukkah Lamp - Italy, 18th Century
Hanukkah lamp. Italy, [18th century].
Cast brass; brass sheet, cut and bent.
The back plate is supported by a pair of angels and decorated with curved tendrils interspersed with open-work, fruit and animals. At the top of the back plate is a heraldic shield showing a crowned lion with extruding tongue facing left (apparently a family's coat-of-arms). A row of oil fonts is attached to the base. Each oil font has a small duct for placing the wick.
The plate and the row of oil fonts are made of cast brass and placed above a catch-basin for dripping oil, made of brass sheet. At the left corner of the oil basin is a narrow cylinder, apparently meant for the shamash.
Back plate and row of oil fonts: approx. 15X21.5 cm. Length (including basin): 18.5 cm, width: 25.5 cm. Good overall condition. Pierced holes in the back plate, the heraldic shield and the crown. Some corrosion. Light breaks to basin, and some bends.
