Code 608-49

SOLD

Hand Carved Antique Boulangerie Facade

This is an antique Boulangerie Facade from France. The carved block of wood is very old, maybe even from the 1700's. The frame was added at a later date.

Boulangerie and France's Love for Bread: A boulangerie is a small, family owned French bakery who bakes baguettes, patisseries, croissants, etc...The slim, two-foot long baguette and its heftier cousin, pain parisian, are as much a part of Parisian identity as the Arc de Triomphe or the Eiffel Tower. In France, bread is more than a neutral vehicle to spread with butter and jam or to accompany one of this country's more than 365 types of cheese.

French peasants still trace the sign of the cross on the bottom of their country loaf before cutting into it. Most basic of foodstuffs, sacred element of the eucharist, bread has religious connotations, but also political signifigance in France. What history student could forget Marie Antoinette's famous phrase, "let them eat cake." Her insouciant response to the plight of French peasants deprived of their daily bread was one of the sparks that ignited the French revolution.

Today, there are over 34,000 boulangeries in France, these small shops account for over 70% of all breads sold in the country. The French government recently introduced legislation designed to prevent any bakery from calling itself a "boulangerie" if it does not make, knead and cook entirely from scratch on the premises

H=14, W=24 1/4, D=3 1/4

Le Louvre Antiques

1400 Slocum Street

Dallas, TX  75207

214-742-2605    FAX: 214-742-2639

www.lelouvre-antiques.com

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