They are ——-, I overhead the man say to the woman as they stood just outside the doorway to the room where I was previewing items on a table at the auction house. I was familiar with the item he was identifying, but I didn’t recall seeming them in that room.
Once I finished my previewing, I walked to the other room to see what he was referring to. The only thing resembling the items were two decorative thin twisted metal poles, one with a dusty white glass globe in the center, and tripod feet. They were more than 6 feet tall with a series of spear-like tips at the top.
I’d never seen one of these things in person, but this one did not look as I expected – much too fancy. They resembled floor lamps that would illuminate a room, but their true function was not far from the lamp’s. They would be used to secure a structure.
Although smaller in stature, these items would work well with a certain oversized public sculpture in Philadelphia that was created by Isamu Noguchi in honor of one of the country’s greatest inventors and statesmen.
Can you guess what these tall metal items are? Click on the photo for the answer.
