Early 19th Century French Glazed Terracotta Resin Dishes, Set of 2

Pair of resin dishes in glazed terracotta. In the South West of France, the country named Landes was a poor country having very few natural resources, the inhabitants lived on meager harvests whose land was manured by their flocks of sheep. The Landais also exploited the resin of the maritime pine: it was collected at the foot of the tree using a very artisanal technique which offered low yields: tapping with “crot” (from the Gascon cròt: hole). To harvest the resin, ancient resin workers dug a hole at the foot of the pine, generally between the roots, which they lined with moss. The resin obtained, if it had not crystallized on the care before arriving at the base of the pine, was full of impurities: twigs, sand, insects, and it contained very little turpentine. A first progress was to put dishes at the bottom of these holes which made it possible to collect the resin with fewer impurities, In 1844, the resin pot replaced the resin dishes. They were more effective because the pot could be placed directly on the trunk of the pine tree. This is the reason why these resin dishes are very rare. They were only used in a transitional period before the technique of harvesting the resin was improved. Our antique dealer wanted to keep these witnesses of our history intact, which is why he left the resin and pine needles on these dishes. This material is friable, which allows you to see the terracotta covered with glaze inside the dishes. Below the dishes we see that they are made and cooked irregularly, which makes each of these dishes a unique object.