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I have searched for weeks and cannot find a pair like these. It seems they are painted over glaze. Familie Rose, very slight imperfections (a few rough spots inside sticks- a tiny black spot on apron. No obvious identifying marks although there could be (very small squiggly lines could be chinese maker)
They resemble a common type selling online for 100-$400 but more closely resemble a pair on Christies selling at 14,000, the backbones on mine are straight, mine are not shiny less the underside and the tusks don't match the cheaper pairs. I believe the new ones are copied from the style and just don't have the quality,character, and "feel" that I feel mine possess

In my opinion, your porcelain elephants configured as candlesticks are no older than the late 20th century. Their motif looks from afar to resemble what was being churned out at that time by ceramics ornamentation factories in and around China, including Hong Kong and Macao.

While modeled to an extent in the Ming style, the decoration on these squared-off pachyderms combines an anomalous mix of Japanese Imari and Chinese palettes and themes. Such items come and go frequently in the modern market, so there's probably no great reason to attach much significance to your inability to spot an identical pair.

For value comparison, here's a link to an eBay auction of a somewhat similar pair with decoration a bit more harmonious than yours and attributed to the American Winterthur Museum in Delaware. You might wish to keep an eye on the auction to see in the item actually sells at the asking price.

Best regards,

Bill H.

Seems the first link didn't launch. Try, try again:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pair-of-Vintage-Chinese-Porcelain-Elephant-Figurines-by-Winterthur-Museum-/331959622446?

Bill H.

thanks, BILL... i CAN'T FIND THE INK BUT iLL CHECK EBAY AGAIN

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