The shaped cast brass tray with ornate rear handle, raised on three circular feet. The snuffers with plain circular handles and a shaped box to catch the wick. An example...
The shaped cast brass tray with ornate rear handle, raised on three circular feet. The snuffers with plain circular handles and a shaped box to catch the wick.
An example of similar form is illustrated in Gentle and Feild, Domestic Metalwork 1640-1820, (Antique Collectors' Club, 1994), fig. 2 p. 206.
Despite their name, snuffers were not originally designed to put out a candle, but to cut off the burned wick and keep it safe inside the box. Candle wicks did not necessarily burn at the same rate as the wax surrounding them and regular snuffing kept the candle burning and prevented accidental fires. The tray also had a practical use as a place to collect wax remnants and burnt wicks.