French Country · Encyclopedia

An encyclopedia of old French trades and country objects

Before they became antiques, the objects in a French country home were made and used by people with precise skills. This encyclopedia gathers fifteen old trades and nearly eighty objects of rural life, from the butter churn to the church weathercock, drawn from a 1995 survey of French crafts and folk antiques.

Old trades

AI-created French country workshop with an old wooden press, a long workbench, stacked books and a chest of small drawers.

Old trades

Fifteen crafts recorded in their workshops: the cooper, the Lyon silk weavers, the bell founder, the parchment maker, the Camargue saddler, the hatter, the lacemakers of Le Puy and more.

Objects of the past

AI-created French country kitchen with a blue painted dresser holding bowls and jugs beside a scrubbed wooden table.

From the Sheepfold to the Dairy

7 entries · Milk tub and wooden pail, Butter churn, Milk strainer, Basque milking pot.

AI-created vaulted stone wine cellar with bottle racks, a wooden table and an oak barrel.

From the Vine to the Wine

10 entries · Mouth-blown bottles, Cooper's compass, Cooper's broad axe, Drawknife.

AI-created French country garden terrace with terracotta pots, an iron bistro table and climbing roses.

In the Fields

7 entries · Leather-covered hobnailed clog, Flax ripple, Cricket cage, Scythe with a cradle rake.

AI-created French country dressing room with a tall wooden armoire, a bench and folded linens.

Trinkets and Lace

8 entries · Ribbon boxes, Skein winder and its blades, Spinning wheel, Distaff.

AI-created French country dining room with a lit fireplace, candles and a chandelier above a set table.

Fire and Light

7 entries · Trammel hook, Wedding trammel, Oil lamp, Bellows.

AI-created French country workshop with a long wooden workbench, a chest of drawers and pottery.

Wrought-Iron Tools

6 entries · Forester's marking axe, Figured chopper, Sugar axe and sugar nippers, Chest keys.

Antique French armoire with carved doors against a plain wall.

The Cabinetmakers' Work

10 entries · Breton armchair, Flour box, Alsatian chair, Hanging cutlery rack.

Three yellow-glazed French confit pots on an old wooden shelf.

Pottery and Earthenware

11 entries · Stoneware bottles, Glazed jam jars, Snail pot, Oil jugs.

AI-created French country dining room with blue-and-white plates on a painted dresser.

Faience

4 entries · Jacquot jugs, Virgin and Child candle holders, Barber's bowl, Bedside holy-water stoup.

Copper

8 entries · Kettle, Firedog with pot rest, Coquemar, Watering cans.

Antiques by family: identification and value

Antique Furniture and Seating

49 entries · Coffee Table, Antique Dining Table, Side Table & End Table, Console Table.

Tableware, Kitchen and Decorative Objects

82 entries · Antique & Vintage Vase, Milk Glass, Carnival Glass, Depression Glass.

Antique-style brass chandelier with curved arms and glass drops against a pale wall.

Lighting and Mirrors

14 entries · Floor Lamp, Oil Lamp, Table Lamp, French Lantern.

French country garden with iron furniture, Anduze planters, olive trees and a stone fountain.

Garden Antiques

10 entries · Sundial, Garden Statue, Bird Cage, Garden Fountain.

French country living room with a gilt mirror, linen armchairs, aged coffee table, stone fireplace and exposed beams.

Paintings, Posters and Prints

14 entries · Vintage Poster, Vintage Sign, Travel Poster, Advertising Poster.

AI-created French country study with a desk, books and a wall clock.

Clocks, Instruments and Machines

14 entries · Antique Clock, Grandfather Clock, Wall Clock, Mantel Clock.

Jewelry and Accessories

12 entries · Antique Brooch, Antique Engagement Ring, Antique Ring, Locket.

Oval antique gilt mirror with carved foliage against a limewashed wall above a small aged console.

How much is it worth?

Indicative US price ranges for 195 antiques and the details that change them.

Source: Les Trésors de France: vieux métiers et objets d'autrefois (Éditions Rustica, Détours en France collection, 1995), pp. 9–142. Descriptions summarize the book's reportage and captions; the book was published in 1995, so workshops, people, prices and figures are described as the reporters found them then, and some workshops may since have closed or changed hands.