Cast Bronze Ornamental Exterior Light Fixture - Renaissance Revival?

Can anyone help me identify this item? (period, style, country, etc)
Bought it yesterday at an antiques market in Northern California.
It's very heavy cast brass or bronze, 27" long and weighs about 50 lbs.
The top part of the fixture has a socket (no longer operable) where you could screw in a light bulb.
There's a talon which is holding the ring, almost gargoyle-like.
It had birds nest type material in the crevices, reinforcing my suspicion it was high up on a building somewhere.
Looks like the kind of brass/bronze you see on turn of the century federal buildings, courthouses, etc... although someone told me it looked European, not American.
I am hoping that this was legally removed from a building which was (probably unfortunately) demolished, but of course there's no way to know.
Thanks for any info/ideas!