In contrast to the incised decoration found on many of the Doulton Lambeth products, the surface of these tall candlesticks contains a riot of relief ornamentation, an irresistible invitation to the sense of touch as well as sight. . Much of the decoration involves elaborate beadwork--in a horizontal band around the exterior of the socket and in descending spirals down the shaft. The spiral rows of white beading contrast with alternating chains of dark green hexagons. The base of the shaft and foot are ornamented in more traditional stylized leaves and blossoms.

Careful observation reveals that the descending strings of ornament spiral in opposite directions indicating the care taken to make the sticks a complementary pair.

In 1815 John Doulton entered into a partnership to produce stoneware which eventually in 1854 became Doulton & Co. The product was functional--bottles and pipes--with decoration a very secondary concern. John's son Henry, however, entered into a relationship with the Lambeth School of Art in the early 1870's to establish a studio to produce unique artist-decorated pieces, one of the earliest flowerings of the art pottery movement. Doulton expanded into table wares and porcelain after acquiring the Staffordshire pottery, Pinder Bourne, and in 1901 received the warrant to become Royal Doulton. Art production in Lambeth reached a peak in the 1890's and continued well into the twentieth century, though with a slow decline in quantities produced and decorators employed.

Generally the Lambeth studio emphasized surface decoration, reflecting contemporary interest in flat patterns. Typically designs are incised. Colored glazes complement the pattern but were seldom allowed to completely obscure the natural tones of the stoneware body.