Antique Cutting Board - IV

Found in a village in the Rhône-Alps, this antique French cutting board was hand-carved from a single thick piece of wood, a large rectangle with clipped corners and a tall, narrow handle. Boards shaped like this lived in the kitchens of the Rhône-Alps 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 pale, sandy blond, finely ridged along the grain and softly scratched from years of use. Sylvie sets it on the kitchen counter with a couple of artichokes beside it, part cutting board, part still life.