Tiffany & Co. and Edward C. Moore "Paulownia" Suite of Candlesticks

This suite of two twin-branched candelabra and two candlesticks was commissioned by Mary Jane Morgan, wife of the prominent industrialist Charles Morgan. It is emblazoned with her monogram, MJM. Richly ornamented with the paulownia crest—long associated with the imperial household and later adopted as an emblem of the Japanese government following the Meiji Restoration (1868). The knops are embellished with the diaper pattern known as shippōmon (七宝文), rendered in red and brown oxides. The term shippō (“seven treasures”) refers to precious materials—gold, silver, lapis lazuli, agate, pearl, coral, and crystal—and is thought to have inspired the name shippō-yaki (七宝焼), or cloisonné enamel. By the Edo period, the motif had become widespread across decorative arts, appearing on porcelain, metalwork, lacquer, and textiles, often adorning women’s kimono as seen in surviving ukiyo-e woodblock prints. Further enlivening the surfaces are butterflies executed in mokume-gane—literally “wood-grain metal”—a technique in which layered alloys are fused and worked to produce patterns resembling natural wood grain. The capitals are accented with finely modeled copper Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica), completing a program of ornament that combines technical virtuosity with a sophisticated adaptation of Japanese motifs.