Wrought Iron Pulpit Grille, 18th Century

A carved wooden frame serves as a support for the wrought iron grille that has decorated balusters: all have a heart-shaped form in the centre, whi...

Pair of columns. Wrought iron. Possibly Spanish school, 17th century. Pair of architectural supports made of iron with a polygonal central axis, ending in a spherical shape on one ...

This large and attractive architectural piece is known as a pulpit canopy. Before the advent of microphones and speakers, orators would often address assemblies from elevated platforms known as “wine glass pulpits”. These podiums featured domed roofs called abat-voix, sometimes known as sounding boards, that would project sound outwards. Our walnut wood pulpit canopy is a fine example of such a device. Hand-carved and hand-painted in Italy in the 1700’s, our abat-voix is roughly octagonal in shape. Each of the sides have edges with luxuriously thick step molding, alternating between stained and gilded wood. Each of the corner cornices are adorned with gilded flower carvings, although some are missing. The interior of the canopy features a gilded open sun with sinuous rays emanating all around. Each of the sides are adorned with foliate margents surrounded by scrolls, again with some losses. All the edges are bordered with a thin layer of gilding. Although our fascinating 18th century Italian walnut pulpit canopy was designed for a church pulpit...

A very attractive 18th century fireplace fitment handsomely constructed from hand forged iron. Fireplace fitments such as this one were used in the large walk in kitchen fireplaces a...