A fabulous find! This is not a jardiniere (as some would think of it and use it perfectly well in that way). It is a fine old c.1840-60 Victorian Dutch tea or teapot stove, originally created to hold a heating element with candle or stove coals onto which a metal teapot could rest to preserve the heat. The piece is a free-standing piece of furniture that would stand to the side of the master of the table, though certainly beautiful enough it could be placed on a buffet table. It is turned wood, black and natural and is in very fine condition. The handle remains, the inner zinc liner remains and will hold ice well, owing to a small repair to the bottom ridge/solder. Ready to put to use in your home, or mine. Full measurements noted on photos but as you can see, if used as a wine cooler (as we did), it's large enough to cool several bottle at once as a wine caddy.
Very good to excellent condition for age and type. The wood is beautiful, not damaged by chip or crack nor restoration. It is a beauty, large at 15" top diameter, it will hold up to 4 bottles with ice to cool them, though 3 seems comfortable. The bucket-like body has a raised plinth stand that is pegged to attach. It looks as if it was once affixed by glue, but we'll leave it separated for easier shipment. You might choose to permanently attach it to the base again. The zinc liner lifts out, has a copper coating but that has mostly been lost to the ages, as you can see from the interior view. The wooden bucket portion is put together much like an old beer barrel, in sections (visible in our photos, from inside) and some of those panels have a line visible to the outside where they're joined. This is inherent in the construction and is not a flaw. We've patched the seam at the bottom of the liner so it holds ice without leaking. Ready to use. RARE find!
