Large 19th Century French Grape Picking Donkey Buttocks Basket

One of the best finds from our recent buying trip through Charente, this exceptional 19th-century French grape picking basket was sourced near Bordeaux. Known as a buttocks basket because of its distinctive double-sided shape, it was designed to sit across the back of a donkey during the grape harvest, allowing the load to be carried on either side of the animal. Measuring an impressive 110cm long, the basket survives in amazing condition for its age, with its woven construction, central streamed branch handle and unusual sculptural form still intact. A rare piece of French vineyard history and a brilliant decorative object in its own right, particularly hung from a ceiling, placed above a large cupboard or tucked beneath a kitchen island. Its scale and instantly recognisable period construction also make it an excellent original prop for film, theatre, or period set dressing. Some old historic worm holes and a few splits H:45cm L:110cm :W45cm