The enduring appeal of glass chandeliers

Chandeliers are vulnerable once off the ceiling, and a short trip in a bouncing van to auction is often enough to produce glass cornflakes from an aged light fixture, says Kya de Longchamps

ROMANTIC, impressive and champions of light play, it’s easy to see why glass chandeliers have remained a popular choice as a pendant light fitting.

The term covers a huge array of designs, from shrubby glass classics of the Regency era, right through to the chrome-plated sculptural styling of the Art Deco period. Surviving favourites include Dutch frames dominated by their metal skeleton, majestic crown style faceted ‘coronas’ of glass, and ‘bags’ of beaded strings and graduated drops forming voluminous draped skirts nipped at the waist.

Waterfalls of flat cascading crystal prisms spilled diamonds across the dusty dance halls floors of the 1920s, and trembling clouds of buttons and pear drops still hold sway in gracious drawing rooms, front rooms and nostalgic sleeping quarters.

Despite the medieval roots of the chandelier as a hefty wood cradle for candles, today the term says glass in flight, and lots of it.

By day, chandeliers deftly seduce natural illumination, and suspended near windows scatter a spectacle of prismatic reflection on the walls and ceiling through shifting beadwork and drops. You can dress chandeliers up or down, taking the electrics out completely if you prefer — as long as it is sized (or in some cases deliberately over-sized) to the space, you won’t appear to have committed a Hyacinth Bouquet.

A large chandelier in a standard metal cage or branchy glass form needs room to breathe. With the exception of concentric hoops that hug the ceiling this must include a decent length of chain. If the fixture is too big, once on the chain, it will put your eye out. If the chandelier is mean in proportion, clinging to Aertex as a central pendant light, it can look ridiculous.

One solution to lowering the light into the room where it can really be appreciated, (even when supported on a modest 8’ ceiling), is to use a generous chandelier over a dining table where line of sight counts over headroom. Matched to a dimmer, in daylight, you have a stunning feature to consider, and by night a glamorous, versatile flattering source of light.

Most chandeliers that turn up in sales rooms and antique outlets are in fact electroliers or gas or oil examples, and never made to hold candles. Despite this, the candle-style fittings complete, with their candle sleeves and wax catching ‘bobeche’, are included in traditional designs.

ALL THAT GLISTENS IS NOT LEAD CRYSTAL: Plastic is light and warm to the touch, and the pieces will have a muddy opaque look compared to glass. If you bang a drop on a proffered tooth, the sharp signature bright ‘ping’ of glass or crystal is unmistakable, but most dealers will resent strollers chewing on the stock.

Lead crystal is not ordinary glass. It contains 5-40% lead oxide which adds clarity and increases its ‘refractive index’, the power of the cut glass to split white light into a mesmerising spectrum of colour.

It’s intrinsically heavier than glass, so another clue that you may have a lead crystal light fixture is the muscularity of the frame. It will also be marked up for quality. At the end of the day, request a fully descriptive receipt from a reputable dealer and if you are viewing a chandelier out of reach at auction, ask the staff to explain what you’re looking at.

In terms of damage, the most serious problem is a missing glass arm or embellishment, especially if the piece is in any way unusual. Chandeliers are vulnerable once off the ceiling, and a short trip in a bouncing van to auction is often enough to produce glass cornflakes from an aged glass light fixture.

In a very ornate piece, a missing branch may not be noticed in a forest of glittering glass. Gilded metal canopies, finials, hoops, spires, plates and tents can be made to complete a chandelier orphaned of one or two iron, brass of steel elements, but glass is not so easy.

Sourcing, for example, the right symmetry for a blown glass ‘barley twist’ branch or pressed glass baluster will take time. Specialist dealers and restorers often have fatally gutted examples they are happy to sell in individual pieces. Keep in mind that a re-wiring with lovely vintage gold cabling may have been carried out in the 1930s. Unless the piece has a complete overhaul in recent years you should budget for an overhaul by a specialist RECI qualified electrician using vintage-style components.