Pair of Hand-Painted Lavender Espresso Cups and Saucers from Sault

These two small ceramic espresso cups and their generously proportioned oval saucers came from Chanteduc, Patricia and Walter's farmhouse in Vaison-la-Romaine. Each cup is handmade and hand-painted, the white glaze smooth and clean, with a single sprig of lavender in soft purple and green painted with a steady hand on the face of each piece. The cylindrical form is compact, with a small loop handle and a satisfying weight. Signed "Sault" beneath the base, they come directly from the hilltop village that sits on the high plateau near Mont Ventoux — the heart of Provence's lavender country, known for its fields, its distilleries and its centuries-long cultivation of aromatic plants. Set out on a breakfast tray, arranged on a kitchen shelf, or brought to the table for coffee after a long Provençal lunch, they carry the character of where they were made. For anyone who has driven through the plateau above Ventoux in July, when the lavender stretches to the horizon, these cups need no further explanation.