Hammer highlights
One of a pair of George III steel, brass and fruitwood table rushnips and candleholders, probably Sussex, c.1800 – £5500 from the Hopwell collection at Bonhams.
Folksy 18th and 19th century vernacular lighting retains a strong following. Rushlights, rushnips and hog scrapers – evocative of an era when a bullrush dipped in tallow and oil might provide five hours of light for a farthing – can have great sculptural presence and wonderful surfaces.