Antique Silver Candelabra — Complete Guide

Silver candelabra are the showpieces of the antique dining table — and the strongest performing category of antique silver lighting in today's market. A good pair of Georgian three-light candelabra commands £8,000 to £25,000; an important pair by Paul Storr, Garrard or Hennell can reach £40,000 to over £100,000. They are also the easiest piece of household silver to mistake — branches, columns and bases are often not the same period, and the difference between loaded and cast construction transforms value.

This guide explains the candelabra category in plain terms: types, construction (loaded vs cast), how to read the marks, what specific Georgian, Regency, Victorian and modern examples look like, and what they are worth.

Candelabrum vs Candelabra vs Candlestick

The distinction is important. A candlestick holds one candle. A candelabrum (singular) is a candlestick with detachable branches turning it into a multi-light fitting — typically two-light (one branch and one central), three-light or five-light. Candelabra is the plural. Antique candelabra are almost always sold and used in pairs, occasionally in sets of four or six for very large dining tables.

Loaded vs Cast — Why It Matters for Value

Two principal construction methods. The difference dictates weight, gauge and value:

• Cast — solid silver poured into a mould and finished. Heavy gauge, no internal filler. Cast Georgian candelabra are heavy (sometimes 2–3 kg per pair) and consequently expensive in absolute terms. They are the highest grade.
• Loaded — stamped or raised sheet-silver columns with a heavy resinous filler (originally pitch and plaster, latterly resin) inside the column to give weight and stability. The column itself is thin-gauge silver. Loaded candelabra are the standard 19th and 20th century construction. They are perfectly genuine sterling silver, but the silver content is much lower than the gross weight suggests.

Loaded candelabra are usually marked "loaded" on the base, or have a felt-covered weighted base. If a "Georgian" pair feels suspiciously light or has unfilled stamped construction, it is more likely a 20th-century reproduction in Georgian style than an actual 18th-century pair.

Style Periods

Early Georgian (1714–1750)

Plain cast columns, shaped square or octagonal bases, simple drip pans. Branches are scrolled and integral. Very desirable.

Mid-Georgian / Rococo (1750–1770)

Cast scrolling foliate stems, shell motifs, mask escutcheons. The Lamerie / Crespin / Sprimont generation. Among the most valuable silver objects ever made.

Late Georgian / Neoclassical (1770–1800)

The Adam style — fluted columns, urn-shaped sockets, beaded edges, restrained classical decoration. Pairs by Hester Bateman, John Carter and the Sheffield makers belong here. Less heavy than rococo but elegant. £4,000–£15,000 typical for good pairs.

Regency (1800–1830)

Heavy gauge, foliate cast branches, gadrooned bases, sometimes with applied vine and grape detail. Paul Storr is the dominant name — Storr Regency candelabra command £15,000–£60,000 per pair, more for important commissions.

Early to mid-Victorian (1837–1880)

Naturalistic cast branches with foliage, fruit, sometimes figural caryatid stems. Often heavier and more elaborate than Georgian. Major firms: Garrard, Hennell, Hunt & Roskell, Elkington. £3,000–£20,000 typical pair price.

Late Victorian / Edwardian (1880–1910)

Mostly loaded construction, reproducing earlier styles — "Adam revival" being common. Major Sheffield production by Walker & Hall and Mappin & Webb. £1,500–£5,000 typical pair.

Modern / Reproduction (1950–2000)

Loaded construction in Georgian and Adam styles. Sheffield and Birmingham hallmarks. £800–£2,500 per pair.

Cast scrolling foliate branches with central flame finial — a Regency feature.

The "Married" Candelabra Problem

Detachable branches are exactly that — detachable. Over 250 years, branches get lost, broken, replaced, swapped between pairs, and "made up" from spares. A "Georgian pair" can in fact be: Georgian bases + Victorian branches + later sockets. Each component carries its own hallmarks. Always check that:

• The bases are a true pair (same maker, same date, same model).
• The branches match each other (left and right) and ideally match the bases by maker/date.
• The sockets and drip pans match the branches.
• The candlesticks under the branches are themselves a genuine pair (same model, mirror-image not duplicate).

Married candelabra are still saleable but are worth substantially less than a true matched pair.

A heavy gadrooned Regency base with full London hallmarks on the foot.

Major Makers to Look For

• Paul Storr — Regency master; heavy gauge, foliate cast, naturalistic. Highest tier.
• Garrard & Co — Crown Jeweller; high-quality presentation candelabra throughout 19th and 20th centuries.
• Robert Hennell dynasty — fine Georgian and Regency.
• John Carter, John Schofield, Henry Chawner — late Georgian neoclassical.
• Matthew Boulton — Birmingham Soho Manufactory pairs.
• Hester Bateman — slender neoclassical pairs.
• Hunt & Roskell, Elkington — Victorian.
• Walker & Hall, Mappin & Webb, James Dixon — Sheffield late Victorian / Edwardian production.

What Silver Candelabra Are Worth

• Edwardian loaded pair, Sheffield, Adam revival: £900–£2,500.
• Mid-Victorian cast pair, naturalistic: £2,500–£8,000.
• Late Georgian Adam-style pair, good maker: £4,000–£15,000.
• Regency pair, heavy cast, good maker: £8,000–£30,000.
• Paul Storr Regency pair: £20,000–£80,000+.
• Important Regency / rococo set of four: £60,000–£250,000+.

Variables: gross weight, gauge, condition (no splits, bobeches present, original sockets), originality of branches to bases, completeness as a true pair, maker premium and engraving (original armorial intact adds value, erased takes it away).