French Antique Limestone Trough

A French antique limestone trough that is nearly square in plan, dense and grounded, with an uneven rim and walls that carry the small, close tool marks of the day it was shaped. The limestone is pale bone and dusty gray with scattered patches of warm rust and faint mineral staining, and the texture throws countless small shadows across each face. A round drain hole passes through the thick side wall.

It measures 27 inches wide, 26 inches deep and 17 inches high; the interior is about 19 1/2 by 19 inches and 9 inches deep, so the walls are close to four inches and the floor of the basin is a full eight inches thick. Condition is as found and the drain is open.

Planted, it takes a small citrus, a box ball or layered herbs rising from the heavy walls. Under a wall spout it makes a fountain basin where water will deepen the gray. Its depth and solidity also suit it to use as a utility sink in a laundry or a mudroom, with rough-sawn oak and unlacquered brass around it. This limestone trough is in our yard in Marina Del Rey; come and see the stone trough by appointment, or ask us for photographs and a quote.