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avadoone_gw

Advice on fixing this glass candelabra?

avadoone
12 years ago

These glass candelabras belong to my great aunt. She said her parents got them before she was born, and she is 100! Her daughter tried to wash and, it fell apart.

The top piece in the second picture fits into the piece in the first. There is a funnel shaped glass piece that goes in the middle.

They tried to fix it with a putty and it never dried. Maybe it was the right things to do but they didn't mix it right?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

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Comments (14)

  • lindac
    12 years ago

    That's a very very nice candelabra...take it to a pro!
    I really don't think it needs putty...I think the weight of the piaces holds it together.
    Take another picture....I can't quite get what it's supposed to look like.
    Linda C

  • avadoone
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I can't get a picture until next week. But I can say that it looks like the one you see behind it except the top of it hold multiple candles, the part in the first picture. It was hard to take a picture because the top was SO heavy!

    But if it's "very very nice" and not just "very nice," I think I may take it to a pro. But who?

    There is a high end department store, that has old jewelry, china, and crystal. That is all I can think of.

  • lindac
    12 years ago

    what are you holding on to in the first picture?
    Could that pair "do tricks"as my friend says? in other words come apart and go together in different ways to perform different functions?Like could that bowl sort of thing hold flowers? Are there prisms for both pieces?
    Is there a mark on them any where....like perhaps a triangle with an H in it?
    They are Very Very VERY nice!
    Linda c

  • calliope
    12 years ago

    Agree totally with Linda. Wondering also if the pieces came apart because they're supposed to come apart and were just stuck together with residue from lack of use. Gunk, IOW. You need to understand how they work before you try to fix them.

  • avadoone
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I am not surprised they are so nice. I am in the antique furniture business and have more knowledge in that area. I pulled a fabulous windsor chair from the basement. It was in pieces and I am fixing it back up for her.

    The part I am holding in the 1st picture is the top that hold the candles. You are looking at the center and the arms go out from there.

    The second picture: You are looking at the bottom stand. The piece in my hand has a hole in the bottom and it sits on top of stand. Then the part in the first picture sits into that.

    I guess I will have to take it to Bromberg's and see what they say. I just don't want to have to transport it because it's VERY heavy and I don't want to break it.

    I will not be out there until this weekend. I will do my best to get more info then. I will have to ask her if she remembers is they were attached.

    I will look for a mark. They are priceless to her, but it would be interesting to know more about them. Would it be called glass or crystal?

  • lindac
    12 years ago

    Windsor chairs don't go to pieces because they are made without glue.
    Crystal....glass....remember "a rose by any other name smells as sweet!" Doesn't matter what you call it....
    Buy a roll of bubble wrap before you transport the candelabra....
    Linda C

  • avadoone
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I got some pictures. Maybe this will give a better idea of how it goes together. I put it all together like suggested, it fit, but I was wobbly. I think does need something in there to keep it secure. The other ones (only hold one candle) look like they have some kind of metal ring. I used some of that putty teachers use to stick posters to the wall. IT made it more secure but I was still not comfortable leaving it like that.

    Also, no marks that I noticed. I understand it's not official, but what would be an estimated value for something like this.

    And the windsor char had been broken through the wood. I have taken apart a windor before to strip paint. I just re did the shims. What a pain! I've started to get the old laquer off. It was totally blackened. It is a really beautiful mahogony. The plywood on the back splat appears to be mahogony, also. I have never seen that before and I wonder if that is unusual.

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  • lindac
    12 years ago

    Oh wow!!...Candleabra, 2 matching holders with prisms....beautiful glass!!
    Not much idea about origin....nor value but to say...lots.
    Are all the prisms there and original?
    Thinking $2,000? It's pressed not cut, beautiful clarity....not Venetian, not Irish....look closely for a mark...
    Linda C

  • avadoone
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I am going to bump this up one more time in hopes for an answer.

    I took it to a place that said they could fix it. They said they would use a industrial strength epoxy glue.

    Linda- everything is intact and original.

  • lindac
    12 years ago

    don't let anyone use an industrial strength epoxy on that candle stick....that will be stronger than the glass....if any stress is ever put on the joint, the glass will break before the glue bond.
    It should be put together with some sort of "cement"....sort of like a plaster of paris. Find some one at a jewelry store which deals with antiques.
    Are there any other clues as to origin...like where your aunt's parents lived or where they traveled? What was their station in life? Would they have bought it or perhaps it was a gift and from whom.
    All these things are a clue to where it was made and by whom.
    Linda C

  • dreamgoddess
    12 years ago

    Your candelabra is gorgeous! I have a suggestion for a repair company if you would like to check them out. I'm not affiliated with them, don't work for them etc.

    Montano's Antique Glass Repair repaired a broken epergne for me a few years ago. I shipped it to them after discussing the repairs via e-mail and after I got it back from them, you could barely tell where it had been broken.

    I would recommend them to anyone for antique glassware repair.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Montano's Antique Glass Repair

  • calliope
    12 years ago

    I am also concerned about having this piece 'repaired' with epoxy. If this is a very valuable piece and it wasn't meant to be cemented, or if cemented with an inappropriate material it could affect the value in a very profound way whether it breaks or not. What disturbs me the most is the upturned drip bowl. I'm having a hard time believing it was not meant to be disassembled for cleaning.

  • Fori
    12 years ago

    Can it be secured with something like museum wax?

  • someone2010
    12 years ago

    Some O rings, like the ones used in plumbing fixtures and machinery might work.