Brockwitz Germany Christus Jesus Marigold Candleholder

I purchased this breathtaking candleholder in 2014 from Ellen Richardson from the UK. She brought it to me when she visited the United States for the Jackie Poucher sale in Kansas City, Missouri where I met her for the first time since we started writing to each other years ago. It has been in her collection for over ten years. I could see how difficult it was for her to part with it. She found comfort knowing I will always treasure and share the first piece of Carnival glass listed on this website. Yes, we both agreed it was a wonderful way to christen the Carnival Glass Showcase. I find it exciting to know Jesus has come to America where many people will have a chance to witness Him first hand at conventions and seminars.

This candleholder is so pretty, so fragile, so precious, and delicate that we are amazed it has survived without damage all these years. You could say it's a miracle~~~. I can imagine only a handful of these were custom made, perhaps for a particular church.

Although this item has been on Showcase from the beginning, it is still truly a new arrival to this country. Now that I have it in person, I have taken new pictures of the intricate details of this exquisite treasure. It's definitely one of the major wonders of our Carnival glass world. You'll find I've included the catalog images of the Maria candlestick which is the mate to this Christus one. You will also see the other version of the Christus candlestick which shows a different base with an anchor on it and feet. It, too, has a Maria counterpart

There are two pictures in particular, the last two, that have really made a very deep impression in me. It was taken very late at night with a dark background. It shook me to my core at first (in a very special and profound way) when I looked into the camera to see a life-like image of Jesus appear. It kept me up all night just thinking about it. Here are my thoughts....

I do think the artist who was commissioned to make this mould was the Michelangelo of mould makers. I don't know whether or not he knew his work would translate to this lifelike image. I don't think anyone could have come this close to creating such a wonderful, dramatic likeness of Jesus with all the technology we have today, from a mould, the casting, and then having been iridized. After this whole process of creating it, the odds of achieving this realistic effect are so low that I know there's only one explanation to describe how it happened. Yes, it's nothing short of a miracle, of course! and I do believe in miracles, don't you?

My Mother held it lovingly with both hands and, while clutching it to her chest, a beautiful smile spread across her face as she declared, in her sweet little voice and a twinkle in her eyes, that it was made of pure love.

Here is what Ellen can tell us about it....

"This was the first ever Christus (also known as Jesus ) candlestick by Brockwitz to be reported. It was found by collector and dealer Jim Nicholls at an antique fair in the UK. We saw Jim shortly afterwards and he recounted how he came across it. He saw it from across the hall and his heart nearly stopped. He rushed to get to the stand before anyone else got there. His hands were shaking when he took hold of it. He brought the candlestick to show me and I could honestly say I had never seen anything so beautiful. I had not been a collector for long at that point and remember thinking I would never ever have anything so precious. About three years later, Jim came to see me and asked whether I would be interested in buying the candlestick. After lengthy discussions, my husband Keith and I decided we would go for it. We couldn't take our eyes off it and kept holding it and turning it round and round the whole day. Even now we act the same way every time we take hold of it.

The artistry of this candlestick is beyond belief. One could never imagine so much detail could be worked onto a small area such as the face. Whoever designed the mould was indeed, in my opinion, a great artist. It is a truly beautiful piece. Brockwitz marigold is virtually always a rich deep colour and indeed the candlestick lives up to this showing blues, pinks and golds in abundance.

The candlestick is 10" (25 cms) in height. This item is exceptionally rare and as far as I know, there are only three complete Christus candlesticks." Ellen Richardson

These catalog pictures are courtesy of Bob Smith, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

The Christina Katsikas Collection