A large and interesting pair of C19th brass candlesticks made for the St Philomena Tontine Society c1861.
Tontine societies originated in the C17th became very popular in the C18th and especially in the first half of the C19th, combining features of a group annuity with a kind of mortality lottery.
Each subscriber paid a sum into a trust and thereafter received a periodical payout.
As members died, their payout entitlements devolved to the other participants, and so the value of each continuing payout increased until the death of the final member when the scheme would have usually been wound up.
English, c1861.
Measurements: H: 11” (28cm)