Antique French Blue & White Ironstone Bowl

Good antique condition with signs of age and previous use consistent with a piece well over 100 years old. Any small marks, discolouration or surface wear form part of its history and have been left as found.

Hand sourced by us in France, this lovely old bowl dates from the late 19th to early 20th century and is made from French ironstone, or terre de fer.

The decoration is particularly pretty, with a fine blue floral motif sitting in the centre of the bowl and a continuous trailing border around the inside edge. Rather than the heavier blue and white patterns often found on antique tableware, this one has a much lighter feel, with plenty of the warm white ground left visible.

The shallow form makes it particularly useful today. We'd happily use it as a fruit bowl on a kitchen worktop, for serving at the table, or simply displayed amongst old pottery and ceramics on a dresser.

Pieces like this are exactly what we look for when we're buying in France – old enough to have plenty of history behind them, but still easy to use and enjoy in the home today.

• Antique French ironstone bowl
  
• Circa 1880–1910
  
• French terre de fer

Good antique condition with signs of age and previous use consistent with a piece well over 100 years old. Any small marks, discolouration or surface wear form part of its history and have been left as found.

The blue pattern is what caught our eye. It's delicate without being fussy, and against the slightly warm tone of the old ironstone it feels much softer than modern blue and white china. We'd fill it with lemons or pears and leave it permanently on the kitchen table.