Carved Alabaster Shell Shape Sconces, Pair, Unattributed, 1960

Pair 1930’s Italian carved alabaster table lamps

Circa 1930’s French plaster sconces. Has shell shape. With 2 interior lights. Unusual Lights coming from top and bottom part of sconces. Available 3 pairs

A circa 1940's Italian curved white alabaster single table lamp

pair of circa 1920's Caldwell silver plated sconces with alabaster shade, two interior lights

Pair of Art Deco sconces made of Alabaster and brushed nickel plated metal details. Made in France. Circa: 1950.

Matching pair of transluscent alabaster wall lights, These sconces feature creamy sculptured alabaster marble. Two pairs are available and they are priced as a pair. Four individual ...

Pair of Art Deco inspired Spanish alabaster sconces. Each piece displays naturally occurring variations in color and veining.

These pure white sconces sit upon torch like bases, illuminating the room in the fusion of classical and romantic forms, typical of the neoclassical period. Alabaster lighting was the first used electrical lighting in Europe, prized for its ability to softly diffuse light. As mentioned above, the Neo-Renaissance style was in reality an eclectic blending of past styles, which the architect selected on the whims of his patrons. In the true Renaissance era there was a division of labour between the architect, who designed the exterior highly visible shell, and others—the artisans—who decorated and arranged the interior. The original Italian mannerist house was a place for relaxation and entertaining, convenience and comfort of the interior being a priority; in the later Baroque designs, comfort and interior design were secondary to outward appearance. This was followed by the Neoclassical period, which gave importance to the proportions and dignity of interiors, but still lost the comfort and internal convenience of the mannerist period. It was during the Neo-Renaissance period of the 19th century that the mannerist comforts were re-discovered and taken a step further. Not only did the improved building techniques of the 1850s allow the glazing of formerly open loggias and arches with the newly invented sheets of plate glass, providing the first "picture windows", but also the blending of architectural styles allowed interiors and exteriors to be treated differently. It was at this time that the concept of "furnishing styles" manifested itself, allowing distinctions to be made between interior rooms...