French Antique Limestone Trough

A French antique limestone trough with the profile of a boulder: the sides swell outward from a thick, broken rim and draw in again toward the base. Weathering has split the piece into two colors. The upper half wears a dense crust of dark brown moss and rust-toned lichen; below it the stone shows through as a pale, sandy buff, scattered with small orange lichen spots and dark mineral pits. A round drain hole sits low on one side.

It measures about 37 3/4 inches across and 30 inches high. The interior is roughly 29 1/4 inches across and 20 1/2 inches deep, which puts the walls at about 4 1/2 inches thick. The inside carries a gritty dark patina from a long working life outdoors. It is a very heavy piece and, once set, it stays where it is put.

A limestone trough of this depth takes a specimen olive or a loose planting of grasses. It sits well at the end of a gravel walk, in a kitchen garden, or against a lime-plastered wall where the dark rim reads strongly. This piece has sold; we usually have similar round troughs in the yard or on the water from France, so ask and we will send what is current.