Antique 19th c. French Salt Box, Cabinet, 17 5/8" Tall, Hand Carved Country French
Country French darling! This is a mid-late 1800s "reproduction" of the salt boxes of the 1700s. I've owned and sold several of the early ones. A lot of dealers try to sell these later carved French salt cabinets as c.1700s, not correctly identifying the age. They're still antiques, mind you, but the price for these 19th century ones are quite a bit lower, as is value. I just looked at a 1900s salt box on ebay yesterday that is offered as a 1700s one and priced double what it's value is. Still, less than a 1700s one, but double what it should be. Makes me worry about the customer! We know antiques, and we don't pass-off later goods for earlier museum pieces. That said, this is a charming old one with both the lidded compartment for a bag of salt, and the drawer below. The brass knob is a lovely feature. Why a salt box? You know that before refrigeration, a relatively modern invention, meats and fish were cured for longer storage by salting them and drying the meat. Salt was a staple in