Auction 105 Books | Letters and Manuscripts | Esther Scrolls and Jewish Ceremonial Art
Silver Hanukkah Lamp – Breslau, 1864
Opening: $1,500
Sold for: $5,250
Including buyer's premium
Hanukkah lamp. Breslau, Germany (today Wrocław, Poland), 1864.
Silver, cut, repoussé, and engraved. Marked with the city mark of Breslau and the number 64 (indicating the year 1864; typus xx), and with the maker’s mark: MHS within a rectangular frame (the letters MH conjoined).
The backplate of the lamp is decorated with vegetal and geometric patterns, topped with a shell-shaped ornament. At center, a pierced arch-shaped opening contains a silver plaque engraved with the Hanerot Halalu blessing, traditionally recited or chanted after kindling the lights.
Eight elongated oil fonts with cylindrical spouts and hook-shaped handles are fitted into designated slots above a rectangular drip tray. Two removable servant lights included.
This lamp is similar in its design to a group of Hanukkah lamps produced in Nuremberg during the 18th century, particularly those created by the silversmith Matheus Städlein in the first half of the 18th century. In those earlier examples, the Hanukkah blessings were typically incorporated into the backplate on parchment or paper; in contrast, the later example offered here features a silver plaque engraved with the blessing's text.
For comparison, see: The Jewish Museum New York collection (F197, Braunstein no. 13); Sotheby’s, Tel Aviv, October 1991, Lot 271; and Sotheby’s, New York, 15 December 2022, Lot 130.
Height: 27.5 cm. Max. width: 29 cm. Max. depth: 9 cm. Overall good condition. Minor bends and blemishes. Backplate slightly bowed forward.
Hanukkah and Sabbath Lamps
Hanukkah and Sabbath Lamps