Antique Cutting Board - III

Found in a small village outside Lyon, this antique French cutting board was hand-carved from a single thick piece of wood, a round board with a short squared handle bored through for hanging. Boards shaped like this lived in the kitchens of the Lyonnais countryside, used for everything that needed a flat surface, from bread to onions to whatever came in from the garden. The face has worn to a deep, warm brown, the center crosshatched with years of knife marks and the edges darkened with age. Sylvie lays it flat on the counter with a round of cheese and a knife on top.