Silver Champagne Bucket

You can feel the difference the moment you lift it, the weight of real silver, heavier and finer than the plated buckets it is so often mistaken for. Dating to the 1950s, this champagne bucket is solid silver, a flaring footed urn wrapped near the rim with a band of silver grapes hung in little clusters. A seau à champagne was made to chill a single bottle at the table, packed with ice and kept within reach, and in real silver it was the sort of thing a family brought out only for an occasion. Sylvie fills it with ice and a bottle of champagne for a dinner, the silver beading cold at the centre of the table.