Votive lamp. Andalusia, late 18th century

Votive lamp. Andalusia, late 18th century.
Silver.
It has some chips and cracks.
Weight: 2470 g. (The chains are not silver.)

A votive lamp of Andalusian origin, dating from the late Baroque period, made of silver that has been embossed and chased over its entire surface with floral motifs, both on the small, flared upper body and on the wide lower bowl. The bowl is shaped like an inverted dome topped with a pinnacle. Votive lamps, also known as “Santísimo” lamps, have a long history and served a dual purpose: for worship and as an offering to a deity in gratitude or fulfillment of a promise. Tradition dictates that these oil lamps—crafted by silversmiths, goldsmiths, and, on occasion, artisans from various disciplines—burn and illuminate the Blessed Sacrament or the venerated image in the chapels and on the altars of churches in perpetuity, to keep the devotion of the faithful alive. Featuring ingenious technical solutions and exquisitely decorated, they have embellished majestic Romanesque, Gothic, and Baroque cathedrals. The use of votive offerings—placed in sacred sites for ritual purposes and to appease supernatural forces—dates back to the Neolithic period.