Antique French Copper 9-Hole Escargot / Poaching Pan

There is an uncompromising, industrial severity to historic French culinary copper, even when designed for something as distinctly regional as cooking snails. This substantial, heavy-gauge copper pan features nine beautifully hammered indentations and two robust, sand-cast brass handles secured by iron rivets. While it may have spent its early life resting on a roaring Parisian stove, it has mellowed into an object of pure sculptural character. Having previously sat unappreciated in storage, it has been given a complete workshop clean to lift away decades of greasy grime, revealing a deeply textured, historic surface that sits precisely on the dividing line between beautifully distressed and richly patinated.

Honest Anatomy

This pan is a heavy, thick-walled utility piece measuring 29 cm (11.5 inches) in diameter—extending to 34 cm across the handles—with a side wall height of 6.5 cm. The exterior copper has oxidized over the decades into a striking spectrum of deep, dull fire-reds and plum tones, accented by honest traces of verdigris around the brass handles. The interior reveals a heavily weathered, hand-wiped tin lining that has largely oxidized to a dark grey matte finish, accompanied by vivid green copper-carbonate blooms in the hollows. To be entirely explicit: the interior tinning is completely spent and degraded. This piece is offered strictly as a striking rustic wall hanging or a centerpiece display object; under no circumstances should it be used for cooking or direct food contact.

Specifications & Keywords

• Origin: Made in France
• Material: Heavy-gauge copper, cast brass handles, iron rivets
• Era: Circa 1900–1920
• Form: 9-hole escargot pan / egg poaching dish
• Dimensions: 29 cm diameter x 6.5 cm high