19th c. French Cupboard

Whoever built this cupboard couldn't leave the doors plain, cutting a diamond into each upper panel, the one flourish on a piece made mostly for work. Found in Villeneuve-lès-Avignon and dating to the 19th century, it stands tall and narrow, two paneled doors with an iron lock over a paneled base, opening to shelves within and worn soft with age. Everything about it was cut and pegged by hand in the country, the diamonds and shaped panels done with a chisel and an eye rather than a plan, which is what makes a primitive piece like this feel alive. Sylvie stands it in an entry or a kitchen for linens and dishes, the kind of old cupboard a whole room arranges itself around.