Popular art furniture – Aux-Rois-Louis

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The emergence of period provincial furniture – a play in three acts:

The provincial furniture of the rural populations

In the second half of the 18ᵗʰ century, the country folk began to take an interest in plush hand-crafted furniture, frequently offered on the occasion of a marriage:

Wedding gift wardrobe
Wedding trunk
Bahut vaisselier

Two families got together to celebrate the union of their children. Which of them would show the most generosity? Which one would be the most demanding? One family would order a sideboard or a wardrobe from the cabinet maker, while the other family would ask a renowned blacksmith to make the finest horseshoes. The furniture produced in this way reveals the excellence of the local craftsmen and the originality of the regional culture, different in Cantal and Provence, for example.

The furniture created for these occasions, when the whole village community got together, was inspired by the Louis XV style which was all the rage at that time. A charming, flowery style which reinvented the curve. The curvilinear exuberance of the Renaissance period was well and truly back. This peasant tradition, celebrating the Louis XV style in all its forms, continued right up to the end of the 19ᵗʰ century.

A fine example of provincial country furniture

Oak wedding wardrobe – 19ᵗʰ century – Brittany

For the most part, popular art furniture was specially ordered for weddings. The families deployed considerable means so that their children’s union would be fertile, prosperous and everlasting. The symbols that were used were understood by everybody, since they were rooted in a shared religious iconography. Beside the wardrobe, the other piece of furniture standing for this popular art was often the chest and sometimes the sideboard.

Furniture presented as example. Please contact David on 06 78 92 61 98 if you would like him to offer you similar pieces.

Below you can see a few samples from our vast collection of popular art furniture. Please do not hesitate to consult us.

This type of barrel was dedicated to storing and maturing brandy produced on the estate, often from prunes in the South West. Its particularity lies in being monoxyl, meaning it was carved from a single trunk of poplar. This trunk was still green, allowing the two rounded bottoms, put in place during fabrication, to be completely trapped in the groove as the wood naturally dried. An ingenious process ensuring the barrel's watertightness and preserving its precious beverage.

Monoxyl Poplar Barrel – 19th Century – South West – [MP055]

Aged in a monoxyl poplar barrel, this is what the famous homemade prune brandy could boast of before delighting palates at the feast…

Larch wood table for cracking walnuts (énoisage) – 19th century – Haute-Loire – [MP051]

A thick larch plateau from the foothill forests of Velay and, on each corner, kinds of amazing little hollows…Here we have a genuine “énoisage” table, perfectly designed to wedge the walnuts when snapping them with the mallet called “tricote”, to prevent the nuts from rolling to the other end of the table.

It is believed to have the power to chase away demons, and that's why Pope Leo IV chose it in the 9th century to reign on the steeples of our churches. Very rare, this all-copper church steeple rooster has descended for a while, ready to come protect your home.

Church Steeple Rooster in Copper – 19th Century – Languedoc-Roussillon – [MP050]

Discover the extraordinary power attributed to the church steeple rooster – a demon-chaser chosen by Pope Leo IV in the 9th century to grace our church steeples. A truly rare find, this all-copper rooster has descended briefly, ready to safeguard your home.

This bench, made with oak and chestnut planks, was originally placed inside an Auvergne

Fireplace Bench in Oak and Chestnut – 19th century – Auvergne – [MP049]

The throne of the Auvergne “cantou,” the famous fireplace bench where people crowded to warm up, here it is, authentic and proud, crafted with beautiful oak and chestnut planks.

Oak countryside table-desk – 19ᵗʰ century – Sarlat district in Périgord Noir – [MP053]

This countryside “bureau” has all the distinctive features of those used in th XIXth century to collect the “octroi” when goods arrived in towns on market day. Its rustic solid oak structure rests upon a H-shaped stand off. It has a large drawer one could keep receipts and money.

Offered as part of the bride's dowry by her father, this natural oak chest adorned with tulips and a country bouquet served two purposes in the 18th century: to hold the personal effects of the young bride and to allow the couple to sit at the foot of their bed in complete intimacy. Hence its name

Natural Oak End-of-Bed Chest – 18th Century – South West – [MP046]

It carries the aroma of beeswax that has permeated its natural oak since the 18th century, the era of its birth – a symbol of the union of a young couple whose initials were M and P… This end-of-bed chest is eagerly waiting to return to a room where love will reign, where love will be the law, etc.

Voici un authentique meuble auvergnat, témoignage de l’art populaire tel qu’il Here is an authentic Auvergne piece of furniture, a testament to the folk art as it manifested itself in the 18th century in the southeastern part of the Massif Central. This is a wedding chest assembled with thick larch wood planks, adorned with naive ornamentation inspired by the stylistic repertoires of Louis XIII and Louis XIV.

Wedding Chest in Larch Wood – 18th Century – Haute-Loire – [MP048]

Here is an authentic Auvergne piece of furniture, a testament to the folk art as it manifested itself in the 18th century in the southeastern part of the Massif Central. This is a wedding chest assembled with thick larch wood planks, adorned with naive ornamentation inspired by the stylistic repertoires of Louis XIII and Louis XIV.

Here is a pie dish that has the particularity of being cast right after a church bell, in order not to waste any of the molten metal. Therefore, it is made of the same bronze and can be considered the little sister of a bell, just a few minutes apart, though not an exact twin.

Bell Bronze Pie Dish – 19th Century – Southwest – [MP043]

Do pies baked in a pie dish cast from the same bronze as a church bell, on the very same day, carry the scent of holiness? You can find out by testing this exceptionally rare object, an authentic bell bronze pie dish, ready to ensure the most traditional cooking on a wood fire tripod.

These legs, turned on prismatic masses, clearly express a purely aesthetic pursuit. Their style epitomizes the period of furniture evolution and democratization, which gradually became more sophisticated even in the farthest corners of the French countryside throughout the 19th century.

Small Cherry Farm Table – 19th Century – South West – [MP047]

With its elegantly refined legs, this small South West farm table truly stands out with pride!

Mortar and pestle in beech wood – 18th century – South-West of France – [MP039]

Mortar and pestle in beech wood – 18th century – South-West of France The pestle of this mortar is held with two hands, and the force exerted to crush chestnuts, for example, is increased by the nails planted on its end. Dimensions: Height: 67 cm, diameter: 38 cm, receptacle depth: 42 cm. Reference: [MP039] {{…

Three copper containers of exceptional size: an enormous kettle, the matching pie dish and an equally imposing pitcher. All are in red copper and date from the 18th century, a period during which they were manufactured using the same processes in the South West of France.

Kettle, Pie Dish and Decaliter Jug in Red Copper – 18th century – South West – [MP035] [MP036] [MP037]

It’s a bit like Gulliver’s dinette. On our scale, a huge teapot, a generous pie dish and a colossal milk jug. In reality, these everyday objects, hammered from sheets of red copper, have known the good times of a large wine-growing family in the Médoc in the 18th century. She used it for cooking, bathing and selling wine.

Oak farm table – 18ᵗʰ century – Cantal – [MP031]

This Auvergne oak farmhouse table tells the story of the country where it was born. It is made of a very dense light oak due to the harsh climate of Cantal, where it has courageously grown.

On remarque, sur ce modèle de gaufrier des motifs différents sur la plaquette de gauche, ornée de cœurs en vis-à-vis, et sur celle de droite, ornée de cœurs qui semblent cette fois-ci comme ouverts. Les deux plaquettes bénéficient tout autour de ces cœurs, de décors de volutes, de petites croix et de pointillés.

Waffle mold in wrought iron – 18th century – Périgord – [MP032]

With this type of waffle iron shaped by a blacksmith from Périgord in the 18th century, you could cook not waffles but deliciously crunchy wafers, whose dough was made of wheat flour mixed with milk, butter and sugar It was necessary to have the right dexterity to, once the ladle of dough poured on the…

Walnut sideboard – 18ᵗʰ century – South-West – [MP030]

This sideboard offers us a rare vision: that of the three styles Louis XIII, Louis XIV and Louis XV brought together in a single creation. The sliding drawers adorned with diamonds are in the Louis XIII style The moldings that occupy the entire extent of the uprights and crosspieces framing the doors evoke the Louis…

Oak wedding chest – 18th century – Auvergne – [MP028]

Flowers, passion, a dowry and its sheath Here is how this piece of furniture appeared in Auvergne in the 18th century. Prelude to the wedding, the engagement makes it possible to organize as it should, the imminent arrival of the bride in the family of the groom, under the condition of a dowry made at…

Walnut pantry cabinet – 19th century – Provence – [MP026]

Walnut pantry cabinet – 19th century – Provence Called in its region of origin the “mangeadou”, this cabinet was intended for the storage of food in its upper part, ventilated for this purpose. In the lower part you could store dishes and kitchen utensils. In the middle, two drawers received the cutlery. We recognize on…

Vaisselier dresser-drainer in cherrywood – 19ᵗʰ century – South West – [MP019]

Vaisselier dresser-drainer in cherrywood – 19ᵗʰ century – South West – [MP019] Everything is scalloped curves in this discreet dresser which in fact fulfills two distinct missions. At the very bottom is the drainer on spaced slats while the three top shelves fulfill the function of display, the crockery being held by scalloped bars. In…

Oval walnut cellar table – 18ᵗʰ century – Lot – [MP017]

Oval walnut cellar table – 18ᵗʰ century – Lot – [MP017] All the charm of period furniture from the Province of Quercy is found in the flexibility of the curves and moldings of this pretty little oval table…

Oak storage wardrobe – from a monastery – 17ᵗʰ century – Burgundy [MP005]

Oak storage wardrobe – from a monastery – 17ᵗʰ century – Burgundy A veritable masterpiece created by a 17ᵗʰ century “image maker” (the name attributed to wood carvers), this storage wardrobe stood proudly in a monastery that used to produce Burgundy wine. It bears witness to this noble activity with an abundance of symbols: Four…

Louis XIII kitchen cupboard 17ᵗʰ century – Haute‑Loire – [MP002]

Louis XIII kitchen cupboard 17ᵗʰ century – Haute‑Loire This softwood cupboard used to take pride of place in the kitchen. A unique feature is its spacious drawers for storing bread. Beneath the drawers there is a pull-out breadboard. The doors have skeleton locks with a superb mechanism. The locks and knobs are the authentic originals.…