French Antique 19th Century Limestone Trough

A French antique limestone trough of the 19th century, compact and rectangular, with the plain squared profile of a vessel cut for a farmyard rather than a garden. The surface has aged the way French limestone does outdoors, the faces softened and lightly weathered, the edges rubbed down over a century of use. There is no ornament; the stone and its wear are the whole of it.

It measures about 43 inches wide, 24 inches deep and 19 inches high, a size that reads as substantial without taking over a small space. It came to us from France and is in sound condition, with the surface variation and small losses one expects from a limestone trough of this age. We can drill a drain if it is to be planted.

At this scale it sits well beside a front door, along a terrace wall, or in a small courtyard where clipped boxwood or trailing rosemary can spill over the rim. It would also take a spout as a modest wall fountain. The trough is in our yard in Marina Del Rey and can be seen by appointment, or we will send more photographs and a quote.