September, 1912 
HOUSE AND GARDEN 
147 j 
This modern silver work is after Colonial design as may be seen in 
comparison with original forms at the bottom of page 1 46 
An antique brass candlestick is generally of value since it is so solidly 
made that it survives wear 
wearing quali¬ 
ties of good sil¬ 
ver - plate; the 
ornamental ef¬ 
fect is the same, 
and visitors will 
doubtless think 
them “family 
plate.” No one 
will have a 
grudge against 
you but the bur¬ 
glar and pos¬ 
terity ! 
Sheffield ware 
is unique a n d 
belongs to a 
period of its 
o w n—there is 
no “new” Shef¬ 
field ware, because “electro plating” on other 
metals has entirely taken the place of the 
old, careful and lengthy process of making 
Sheffield ware. If you happen to possess a 
piece of Sheffield silver, preserve it tenderly 
and do not have it replated, for that entirely 
destroys its value; silver plating of to-day does not “renew” the 
Sheffield plate, for the making of the real Sheffield ware is prac¬ 
tically a lost art. You will find dealers who will sell as real Shef¬ 
field a plated ware which is manufactured now, and you may 
find candlesticks that you like among the designs he offers — but 
in buying, be satisfied with plated ware, for it is not “Sheffield” 
unless it is really old, even though it is made in Sheffield, England. 
Although “brass is brass,” the modern brass candlesticks are 
subject to so much economy in 
the making, speaking especial¬ 
ly of the cheaper grades, that 
one is very apt to blame one’s 
ancestors for not laying in a 
large stock in times past, and 
one is apt to value the battered 
old brass candle¬ 
stick from the gar¬ 
ret of a back coun¬ 
try farmhouse, 
no matter what 
family history is 
attached, far 
above the prod¬ 
uct of to-day. 
The brass can¬ 
dlestick of to- 
d a y should be 
used frankly for 
what it is; it 
forms an attrac¬ 
tive furnishing 
as well as a use¬ 
ful one. Where 
old brass finish 
is used in gas or 
electric fixtures, 
the dull old 
brass candle¬ 
sticks tone in better than the bright brass: 
if the fixtures have an oxidized finish, the 
“old English” brass will tone in with best 
effect. 
One point is especially to be observed in 
selecting brass candlesticks—the fineness of 
the finish. Brass finished imperfectly is apt to have “sandholes” 
and the blemishes are often not properly buffed off. Those made 
from “cast” brass are the good wearing ones; they are made in a 
mold and the workmanship is superior to that of the lighter 
weight sheet-metal. Sheet-metal candlesticks are from one-third 
to one-half cheaper than the cast brass, so that the greater the 
price and the greater the weight of a candlestick, the more sure 
we are of good brass. Some knowledge of the quality of brass 
will be useful to the pur¬ 
chaser. Brass is not a pure 
metal but an “alloy,” a com¬ 
position of copper and zinc; 
the greater the quantity of 
zinc used, the lighter the col¬ 
or and the more brittle and 
springy the alloy; 
(Continued on 
page 166.) 
China candlesticks may be 
purchased plain for 
decoration 
One may purchase candle¬ 
sticks to match the bed¬ 
room set 
Modern silversmiths have evolved origi¬ 
nal designs that are extremely beau¬ 
tiful. This is a good example 
At left and right of the central photograph are good examples of pottery candlesticks, made generally in green and brown tones, especially inter¬ 
esting with craftsman furniture. Those in the center are modern work in brass that imitate the best designs of the Colonial period 
