Expert: Martin G Roberts - 1/22/2004

Question
Hi Martin, I was told that a pair of wood and brass sconces I have are from an old ship, and very valuable. I will attempt to describe them: The back of the sconce is made of wood and the size is about a foot square. The top corners are cut off (about an inch diagonally). The wood is about one to one-and-a-half inches thick. There are notches on the front edges. There is a 3-arm brass candleholder attached by a bolt at the top. The bottom of the candleholder has a sort of scrollwork pattern. The sconces were held on the wall by a chain that is attached to the sides of the wood. There is an eagle at the top of the chain. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Answer
-

They certainly are unusual objects - I don't recall seeing anything like this, so I'll proceed with caution.

Dating is very difficult without handling the items. However, you need to consider whether the fittings you describe would actually be suitable for a ship. My personal view is that this is unlikely, partly because any unusually designed object tends to be ascribed to 'for use on a ship' - it's one of the cover-all descriptions that people use when they don't understand an object. In most cases, it is untrue.

Regarding value, again this is difficult because of the uncertainty about other aspects, but the unusual form will count against them when value is assessed on other criteria (condition/age/function) UNLESS they are an especially scarce but known (and desirable) type OR they have strong and historically significant provenance (preferably backed up by documentary evidence). It is generally true that unique objects are worth less than comparable but familiar object types.

Hope that helps

Martin
www.antique-metalware.co.uk