Tiffany Studios New York "Turtleback Tile" Chandelier

This "Turtleback Tile" Chandelier features an elegant bronze collar adorned with interlocking "IX" monograms—a symbolic combination of the Greek letters "I" (Iota) for Iesous (Jesus) and "X" (Chi) for Christos (Christ). The lamp is a variation of the turtleback fixtures originally suspended from a wrought-iron yoke in the living room of Louis Comfort Tiffany’s Long Island estate, Laurelton Hall. There, five lamps—two globes and three dome shades—hung above a large wooden desk. The chandelier’s iridescent turtleback glass tiles are cast in a rounded form that evokes the texture and pattern of a turtle’s shell. The shade is suspended by four chains, each hook gently twisted so that the chandelier remains stable.
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Category: Chandeliers New Acquisitions TEFAF 2026 Tiffany Lamps Tiffany Studios New York ‎
Product Details

Item #: YL-22190
Artist: Tiffany Studios New York
Country: United States
Circa: 1910
Dimensions: shade: 14" height, 20" diameter. (overall height adjustable)
Materials: Glass, Bronze
Exhibition History: A similar chandelier was shown at the Cooper Hewitt Museum's Passion for the Exotic: Louis Comfort Tiffany and Lockwood de Forest exhibit, March 12, 2016-March 26, 2017.
Literature: A similar chandelier is pictured in: Tiffany Lamps and Metalware: An illustrated reference to over 2000 models, by Alastair Duncan, Woodbridge: Suffolk: Antique Collectors' Club, 1988, p. 281, plate 1093. Louis C. Tiffany: The Collected Works of Robert Koch, Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2001, center plate, p.125. Louis Comfort Tiffany and Laurelton Hall, an Artist's Country Estate by Alice Cooney Frelinghuysen, p.90 and 91.

Item #: YL-22190
Artist: Tiffany Studios New York
Country: United States
Circa: 1910
Dimensions: shade: 14" height, 20" diameter. (overall height adjustable)
Materials: Glass, Bronze
Exhibition History: A similar chandelier was shown at the Cooper Hewitt Museum's Passion for the Exotic: Louis Comfort Tiffany and Lockwood de Forest exhibit, March 12, 2016-March 26, 2017.
Literature: A similar chandelier is pictured in: Tiffany Lamps and Metalware: An illustrated reference to over 2000 models, by Alastair Duncan, Woodbridge: Suffolk: Antique Collectors' Club, 1988, p. 281, plate 1093. Louis C. Tiffany: The Collected Works of Robert Koch, Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2001, center plate, p.125. Louis Comfort Tiffany and Laurelton Hall, an Artist's Country Estate by Alice Cooney Frelinghuysen, p.90 and 91.

Curator's Notes
In his twenties, Tiffany was given early access to see the Cypriot antiquities collection of Met Museum director General Luigi Palma di Cesnola. The primitive beauty of the Cyprus's turtle carapace scale rings and bracelets delighted Tiffany, inspiring his turtleback tiles. The "Turtleback" tile was among the earliest innovations at Tiffany Furnaces in Corona New York. A large glass press created the appearance of hand wrought tiles, belying their industrial manufacture. Both the turtleback tile and iridescence were distinguishing factors that marked Louis Comfort Tiffany as a luminary of glass innovation.
In his twenties, Tiffany was given early access to see the Cypriot antiquities collection of Met Museum director General Luigi Palma di Cesnola. The primitive beauty of the Cyprus's turtle carapace scale rings and bracelets delighted Tiffany, inspiring his turtleback tiles. The "Turtleback" tile was among the earliest innovations at Tiffany Furnaces in Corona New York. A large glass press created the appearance of hand wrought tiles, belying their industrial manufacture. Both the turtleback tile and iridescence were distinguishing factors that marked Louis Comfort Tiffany as a luminary of glass innovation.
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