Denizalp D.

Mearto specialist

Hello Virginia, I’m very glad that you chose Mearto for your online appraisal, Considering the photographs, overall pattern, mark and the dimensions, I concluded that this is a Portuguese made lot of Small Candlesticks made by the famous porcelain producer Vista Alegre. Vista Alegre is considered as the first industrial size porcelain producer of Portugal, the brand was formed in 1824 and they are still producing today. Your lot is very interesting because we do not encounter often with Vista Alegre's small sized candlesticks. The brand actually did not produced many candlesticks throughout their history compared to their other wares like plates or vases. Small sized candle holders were especially produced in Germany by countless brands during the mid to late 20th century extensively, Dresden and Schierholz could be shown as examples. As for your pieces, we can understand their intention primarily from their form of decoration. A Rococo Style torch is held by a Putto's hand. Putto is the name given to small baby or children figures used in decoration, usually with wings and holding bows, arrows, torches. The elegant shape of the hands makes us easily detect this feature. The mark underneath your pieces was used by the brand between 1971-1980 period. So we have a very precise date of manufacture. Mottahedeh series of the Vista Alegre porcelain was usually decorated by Chinese patterns but obviously they also had exceptional pieces like yours. Likely, these were originally 12 pieces. The larger dinner sets of the company was produced for 12 people, therefore the lighting elements would also correspond to that same number of pieces. It is very hard to find another example of these pieces, I could only spotted one piece with a Chinese decoration from Mottahedeh series. They are not painted, entirely white. Porcelain quality is very high as these pieces were produced by the Vista Alegre. Some pieces have an additional "71" mark underneath them. In very good condition without visible faults. Hand made by Vista Alegre artists. Dimensions: 3.25 Inches High Each, 1 5/8" Wide on The Rim, Weighes 1.8 Ounces Each Condition: In very good condition without visible faults. Provenance: Purchased from a high-end estate sale. Shaped as a torch held by a putto's hand. 200-300$ for the lot. For more info or confirmation you could e-mail the USA branch of the company: usa@vistaalegre.com For the head quarters in Portugal: geral@vistaalegre.com And for the Vista Alegre Museum: museu@vistaalegre.com Please don’t hesitate to reach us again for more online appraisals on your precious items, thank you for choosing Mearto.