An very unusually tall Welsh rushlight & candle holder.

Wrought iron in a three tier wooden base. It’s difficult to tell the exact wood, due to the wonderful original finish, but it’s quite heavy which make the whole peice very stable. In excellent condition.

6” wide x 6”deep x 25” high / 15.2cm wide x 15.2cm deep x 63.5cm high

Radnorshire, mid-Wales early 19th century.

£1100 Sold

A simple form of lighting in many homes. Rushes were collected in late summer when the skin was peeled, leaving a small strip to give support. The rush was then drawn through melted fat in a “grisset” pan. When dry they could be held in the rushlight holder and lit. The following is taken from “Old English Household Life” by Gertrude Jekyll and Sydney R Jones, 1939 – The ancient system of lighting in English homes, is often feeble, was not entirely inadequate, even though derived from slender sources. In common with other simple home-made expedients it suffered the slings of destructive criticism, and was the butt for caustic wit: “As rushlights in a spacious room, Just burn enough to form a gloom” (1764)