{"product_id":"antique-french-stone-mortar-and-pestle-provence-hand-carved-19th-century","title":"Antique French Stone Mortar and Pestle | Hand-Carved Provençal Mortier | 19th Century","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis antique French stone mortar has the kind of weight that makes you understand old Provençal cooking immediately. It was made for garlic, salt, basil, herbs, olive oil and all the slow grinding that happens before something delicious reaches the table. You can picture it on a stone counter in the South of France with a bunch of basil nearby... the kitchen smelling of garlic and summer.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKnown in France as a mortier en pierre, or stone mortar, this piece likely dates from the 19th century and is hand carved from pale limestone. The shape is wonderfully rustic, with a squarish footprint, rounded bowl and four corner lugs that would have helped steady the mortar while ingredients were pounded inside. No two sides are exactly alike, and that is part of the beauty here. It was shaped by hand, not by any machine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe interior bowl is deep, rounded and smoothed from long use. The outside carries all the irregularity you want to see in an old kitchen tool: worn edges, pitting, small chips, softened corners and a surface that feels as though it has been handled for generations. It has that direct, almost primitive beauty of an object made for a working kitchen.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe wooden pestle is a later companion to the original mortar, turned from dense hardwood with a ringed collar and a rounded working end that sits nicely inside the bowl. Together, the stone and wood have a wonderful contrast: pale limestone, warm old wood and the feeling of a kitchen where things were made slowly and properly.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eToday, it would be beautiful on a kitchen counter with garlic, walnuts, herbs or a bottle of olive oil nearby. It could still be used gently for herbs, salt or dry ingredients or simply kept as a sculptural reminder of Provençal cooking and the old rituals of the French farmhouse kitchen. A great starter piece for a mortar and pestle collection!\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"The Provence Collection","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53504144605527,"sku":"DEC-011","price":575.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0938\/4686\/4215\/files\/antique-french-stone-mortar-and-pestle-provence-hand-carved-19th-century-2.jpg?v=1778342751","url":"https:\/\/theprovencecollection.com\/products\/antique-french-stone-mortar-and-pestle-provence-hand-carved-19th-century","provider":"The Provence Collection","version":"1.0","type":"link"}