Tin Five Branch Candelabra

A five-branch candelabra worked in tin, its stem set with applied leaves, this piece steps outside Spratling's usual silver to a humbler Mexican metal. It dates to the First Design Period of 1931 to 1946.

Tin was a traditional Mexican folk material, and Spratling's use of it for a candelabra reflects the same engagement with local craft and material that drove the Taxco revival he founded. The applied leaves bring a decorative, hand-formed quality to the branching form.

Tin objects are among the rarer survivals from Spratling's output, made in far smaller numbers than his silver, and come to market only occasionally.