Curated Selection

French Copperware

A heavy professional sauté pan from E. Dehillerin, the Parisian house on rue Coquillière that has supplied restaurant kitchens since the nineteenth century and once ran its own boilermaking and tinning workshops. With a wall of approximately 3 mm and a weight of 4.685 kg, it is built for the thermal stability of a working kitchen — a massive iron handle fixed by three large rivets completing a pan made to be used, retinned and used again.

Maker

E. Dehillerin

Origin

Paris, France

Materials

Heavy-gauge copper (approx. 3 mm wall), tin lining, iron handle

Dimensions

Diameter approx. 29 cm; weight 4.685 kg

Marks & signatures

Oval 'E. DEHILLERIN / PARIS' stamp on the side; each of the three interior rivet heads stamped '18'

Condition

Good working condition. Original tin lining worn in places, as expected on a used piece, and ready to be retinned if desired; copper exterior with natural patina and light marks; handle firmly riveted (see photographs).

Status

Available

French Copperware

A graduated run of five copper saucepans from L. Lecellier of Villedieu-les-Poêles, the Norman town whose name has been synonymous with copperwork for centuries, sold under the firm's registered "Cuivralec" trademark. The sizes step evenly from 12 to 20 cm in approximately 1.5 mm copper, each with an iron handle secured by three rivets — a working progression for the stove rather than a display arrangement. What sets this set apart is the survival of its original paper labels, still inside the largest and smallest pans — both of which have never been used, which record how the pieces were sold: as "articles grande cuisine", and explicitly "sans étamage" — without tinning. Labels like these are usually the first thing to be lost, and here they preserve the manufacturer's own description on the objects themselves.

Maker

L. Lecellier (Cuivralec)

Origin

Villedieu-les-Poêles, Normandy, France

Materials

Copper (approx. 1.5 mm), untinned interior as stated on the original labels, iron handles fixed with three rivets

Dimensions

Five saucepans, diameters 12, 14, 16, 18 and 20 cm. Weight: the two largest together 2.956 kg; the three smallest together 2.561 kg (5.517 kg for the set)

Marks & signatures

Round 'L. LECELLIER / Cuivralec / VILLEDIEU' stamp beside the size '20' on the largest saucepan; size numbers stamped on the others. The largest (20 cm) and smallest (12 cm) saucepans retain their original paper labels inside: 'Cuivres · Articles Grande Cuisine · Cuivralec · Marque Déposée · Sans Étamage · L. Lecellier – Villedieu'

Condition

Good vintage condition. The 12 cm and 20 cm saucepans are unused, with their original labels in place. The three others show signs of use, including dull patches and marks on the interior bases. Exteriors with natural copper patina, iridescent heat colouring and light marks; iron handles with surface oxidation; rivets sound (see photographs).

Status

Available

Rare Cast Iron

Conceived by the Italian designer Enzo Mari for Le Creuset in the 1970s, the Mama series distilled the cocotte to its essentials: a softly rounded oval body, sculptural T-shaped handles and a domed lid crowned by a flat mushroom knob. Rigorous yet warm, it is a rare instance of Italian radical design applied to French cast iron — here in a glowing caramel-brown enamel.

Maker

Le Creuset

Designer

Enzo Mari

Origin

France

Period

1970s

Materials

Enamelled cast iron, sand interior enamel, black enamelled base

Dimensions

Length approx. 30 cm handle to handle, interior width approx. 20.5 cm, body height approx. 10.5 cm (without lid)

Marks & signatures

Round Le Creuset cartouche with size '25' and 'MADE IN FRANCE' cast into the base; size '25' cast inside the lid

Condition

Very good vintage condition. Glossy exterior enamel with only light signs of age; clean sand-coloured interior with light utensil marks; base and lid rim sound (see photographs).

Status

Available

Rare Cast Iron

Enzo Mari's Mama collection for Le Creuset reduced enamelled cast iron to a handful of decisive gestures, and this shallow oval dish shows them with particular clarity. The softly swelling body rises from a flat black-enamelled foot to a crisp dark rim, while the two T-shaped handles — the signature of the series — project cleanly from the ends, their upper faces hollowed into a thumb rest and glazed in the same sand enamel as the interior. The warm, satin caramel-brown exterior and pale interior give the piece the quiet, graphic contrast that makes Mama as convincing on the table as in the oven. Size 25, cast with the round Le Creuset mark.

Maker

Le Creuset

Designer

Enzo Mari

Origin

France

Period

Mama collection (European launch 1973); production date of this example not established

Materials

Enamelled cast iron, satin caramel-brown exterior enamel, sand interior enamel, black enamelled base

Dimensions

Length approx. 31.5 cm handle to handle, body length approx. 25 cm, height approx. 7 cm

Marks & signatures

Round Le Creuset cartouche with size '25' and 'MADE IN FRANCE' cast into the base

Condition

Good vintage condition. Satin exterior enamel with even colour and only light signs of age; sand interior with light utensil marks and faint surface marks from use; handles and black base sound (see photographs).

Status

Available

Rare Cast Iron

Designed in 1958 by Raymond Loewy for Le Creuset, La Coquelle brought the streamlined language of post-war industrial design to French enamelled cast iron. Its softly squared body, winged handles and sculpted lid with recessed oval grip make it one of the defining mid-century pieces of French cookware — here in a soft jade-green enamel, as much at home on the table as on display.

Maker

Le Creuset

Designer

Raymond Loewy

Origin

France

Period

Mid-20th century (design 1958)

Materials

Enamelled cast iron, grey interior enamel, black lid knob

Dimensions

Length approx. 29.5 cm handle to handle, width approx. 20 cm, body height approx. 9.5 cm (without lid)

Marks & signatures

Size '25' and 'MADE IN FRANCE' cast into the ribbed base; numeral cast inside the lid; original knob fixed with two screws

Condition

Good vintage condition. Exterior enamel bright and glossy with light surface marks; grey interior enamel shows light signs of use; a few small nicks along the rim edge (see photographs).

Status

Available

Champagne & Wine Objects

A classic French champagne bucket in which the maker and the house are both clearly identified: the base is stamped by Guy Degrenne, the Normandy stainless-steel specialist, while the applied brushed plaques read 'Champagne Taittinger'. The form is the archetypal bistrot and brasserie bucket — a tapering body flaring into a rolled rim, a band of fine turned lines around the lower half, and two drop-ring handles hung from baluster mounts. Made in 18/8 stainless steel, it is a robust, honest piece of French table service with the clean, graphic branding of one of the great Reims houses.

Maker

Guy Degrenne (produced for Champagne Taittinger)

Origin

France

Period

Second half of the 20th century (production date of this example not established)

Materials

18/8 stainless steel, applied brushed-metal house plaque, drop-ring handles

Dimensions

Height approx. 21 cm, rim diameter approx. 21 cm

Marks & signatures

Stamped on the base 'GUY DEGRENNE · INOX 18-8 · MADE IN FRANCE'; applied plaque 'CHAMPAGNE TAITTINGER' on both sides

Condition

Good vintage condition consistent with use. Plaques intact and legible; water and mineral marks around the plaques and on the body, small surface spots and light scratches; interior with a mineral ring on the raised base; underside with scratches from use; ring handles with a darkened patina (see photographs).

Status

Available

Champagne & Wine Objects

A French champagne cooler conceived as table service rather than as a promotional object: there is no house branding, only the maker's signature 'Jean Couzon Orfèvre' and the 'INOX 18/10' steel specification beneath the base. The tulip-shaped body flares into a generous rolled rim and rests on a stepped pedestal foot finished with a beaded border and a ribbed band — the vocabulary of classic French orfèvrerie translated into stainless steel. The two ring handles are fully articulated, hung from baluster mounts with medallion-capped knops, and their rings carry fine gadrooned decoration. The mirror-polished exterior contrasts with the brushed interior. Following our guide to French champagne buckets, we describe it simply as a later-20th-century Jean Couzon cooler, without attaching an unsupported model name or year.

Maker

Jean Couzon Orfèvre

Origin

France

Period

Later 20th century (model name and production date not documented)

Materials

Polished 18/10 stainless steel, brushed interior, articulated ring handles

Dimensions

Height approx. 22 cm, rim diameter approx. 20 cm

Marks & signatures

Underside marked 'Jean Couzon Orfèvre' and 'INOX 18/10'

Condition

Good vintage condition consistent with use. Water and mineral marks on the body and underside, light scratches and small surface spots; the brushed interior with a few spots; handle mounts and rings with a darkened patina; the ribbed foot intact (see photographs).

Status

Available

Champagne & Wine Objects

A refined French champagne cooler in stainless steel, bearing the branding of the Champagne house Laurent-Perrier rather than a named manufacturer. The elegant, understated form is finished with a leather handle grip and discreet house branding — a stylish piece equally suited to serving or display.

Maker

Produced for Laurent-Perrier (manufacturer unmarked)

Origin

France

Materials

Stainless steel, leather handle grip

Dimensions

Height approx. 21–22 cm, top diameter approx. 20 cm

Marks & signatures

Laurent-Perrier branding on the front plate and handle detail; logo on the leather grip. No separate manufacturer's mark is present.

Condition

Very good. Clean interior; light signs of use to the exterior (minor surface marks, see photographs). No dents.

Status

Available

Champagne & Wine Objects

Few Champagne houses own a colour as completely as Veuve Clicquot, and this bucket turns that yellow-orange into the object itself. The deep, tapering ovoid body is moulded in a translucent orange material that glows when light passes through it, banded below the rim by bold black serif lettering alternating with the historic V.C.P. anchor — the Ponsardin emblem that identifies the Maison rather than the maker of the bucket. A single gold-tone knob handle provides the only metal accent, keeping the silhouette clean and almost sculptural. A distinctive piece of 20th-century French Champagne barware, as striking on a sideboard as it is in service.

Maker

Produced for Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin (manufacturer unmarked)

Origin

France

Period

20th century

Materials

Translucent moulded synthetic body (often described as acrylic in comparable examples; no material mark on this piece), gold-tone metal knob handle

Dimensions

Height approx. 22 cm, rim diameter approx. 20 cm

Marks & signatures

Printed black 'Veuve Clicquot' lettering alternating with the V.C.P. anchor emblem around the upper body; no manufacturer's mark

Condition

Good vintage condition. Colour even and printed lettering crisp; light surface marks and small scuffs from use, mainly around the rim and the foot; interior with light marks; handle with light wear to the finish (see photographs).

Status

Available

French Design & Decorative Objects

A covered ceramic vessel bearing the name of the French house of Christian Dior, yet explicitly marked as made in Italy — a reminder that French design and French manufacture are not the same claim. The pale bluish-white tin glaze is painted in the Faenza "Garofano" (carnation) manner: stylised carnation blooms with sweeping green foliage in orange-red, cobalt, olive and yellow, above the characteristic band of blue scale-work waves. The fitted, gently scalloped lid repeats the palette with a hatched rust-red lattice border and scattered flower sprays, and is crowned by a looped finial echoing the two scrolled handles. The Garofano decoration is a classic of Faenza maiolica; the mark does not name a pottery, and we do not attribute the piece to one.

Maker

Christian Dior

Origin

Italy

Materials

Tin-glazed earthenware (maiolica), hand-painted polychrome decoration; unglazed foot ring

Dimensions

Rim diameter approx. 13 cm; body height approx. 9 cm (without lid)

Marks & signatures

Painted freehand in dark brown under the base: 'Christian Dior' above a small painted device, with 'Made in Italy' below

Condition

Very good vintage condition. Bright, glossy glaze and vivid colours; no cracks observed. A small glaze chip at the foot rim underneath, not visible when displayed (see photographs).

Status

Available

French Design & Decorative Objects

A covered oval dresser or trinket box from the Limoges house of Limoges Castel, in the classic cobalt-and-gold manner associated with French presentation porcelain. The deep, almost midnight-blue ground is worked with dense gilt scrollwork around the sides, while the domed lid frames a white reserve with a printed polychrome galant scene — a courting couple in a pastoral landscape — within a raised gilt rocaille cartouche. The interior is glazed in the same dark blue, and the lid seats onto a white, gilt-edged rim. It comes with its original blue presentation carton, whose printed shield matches the gold mark on the porcelain itself — a small but useful piece of evidence tying the object to the house.

Maker

Limoges Castel

Origin

Limoges, France

Materials

Porcelain, cobalt-blue ground, gilt decoration, printed polychrome scene

Dimensions

Length approx. 14 cm; height of base approx. 4.5 cm (without lid)

Marks & signatures

Gold shield device on the base reading 'LIMOGES CASTEL® · FRANCE', with '22 K GOLD' beneath. Original blue printed carton reading 'PORCELAINE LIMOGES CASTEL FRANCE' around the same shield

Condition

Very good condition. Glossy glaze; gilding bright with no notable rubbing; no chips or cracks observed. Presentation carton shows light wear to the edges (see photographs).

Status

Available

French Design & Decorative Objects

A presentation plate from the Limoges house of Limoges Castel, complete with the paperwork that so rarely survives. The wide border is laid in a deep carmine-red ground, richly worked with gilt floral sprays and finished with a gilt rim line; the white well carries a printed polychrome galant scene of a young man serenading a seated lady with a guitar in a garden setting, in the eighteenth-century fête galante manner. The name printed within the scene records the composition the decoration was sold as being after — it is part of the transfer, not a signature. It comes with its original blue presentation box, the house's bilingual certificate explaining the 'Limoges Castel' backstamp, a printed house leaflet and a brass hanger, making it an unusually well-documented example of French presentation porcelain.

Maker

Limoges Castel

Origin

Limoges, France

Materials

Porcelain, deep red ground, gilt decoration, printed polychrome scene; brass plate hanger

Dimensions

Diameter approx. 24 cm

Marks & signatures

Blue printed shield device on the base reading 'LIMOGES CASTEL® · FRANCE'. The printed scene carries a name within the composition and a small printed 'Limoges' inscription. Original blue 'PORCELAINE LIMOGES CASTEL FRANCE' presentation box, bilingual printed 'Certificat d'authenticité' and house leaflet

Condition

Very good condition. Bright red ground and gilding with no notable wear; no chips or cracks observed. Box shows light wear to the edges; certificate creased from folding (see photographs).

Status

Available

French Design & Decorative Objects

A matched pair of decorative dishes from the Lorraine faience house of Longwy, sharing the same softly triangular free-form shape, the same deep black ground and the same hand-painted technique: polychrome enamels drawn out with fine gilt and white line work. The subjects are deliberately contrasting — a skier cutting down a snowy slope between conifers and slalom flags, and a stone watermill with a red wheel above a tumbling weir framed by autumn foliage. Two different scenes in one house style is what gives the pair its interest: read together, they are clearly related production, made to be hung and shown side by side.

Maker

Longwy

Origin

Longwy, Lorraine, France

Materials

Earthenware (faience), glossy black glaze, polychrome enamels with gilt and white line work

Dimensions

Each approx. 28 cm across at the widest point

Marks & signatures

One painted by hand 'Peint Main · Made in France · Longwy' with a painted reference number; the other with a gilt 'Décoré à la main · Longwy · Made in France' roundel and a 'SKIEUR' title cartouche. Both footrings pierced for hanging, one with its wire hanger

Condition

Very good vintage condition. Glossy black glaze with bright enamels and gilding; unglazed footrings show the expected light wear. Please refer to the photographs.

Status

Available