The tradition in China is to protect doorways with a foo dog placed at each side of the door, at least for wealthier families. They are thought to insure powerful protection.
This is a beautiful, fairly ornate candle with a lot of flourishes. Wonderful, natural bees wax colored with natural coloring and a cotton wick. Beeswax is naturally hypoallergenic, burns clean (no soot) without dripping and burns longer than paraffin wax.
We call them foo dogs, but in China they are just called shi, which means lion. And, as you can see, this little guy is much more of a lion than a dog. Measures 3 inches by 2 inches at the base and 2 inches high.
This candle is of the male foo dog. He is depicted with his mouth open (so that he can chant om) and his paws on a large embroidered ball that is known in the west as the flower of life ball. The teeth, claws and eyes warn intruders of the powerful defense the lion is prepared to use. (A female foo dog is shown with a cub under her left paw.)