Old cast iron palmette for gate

Beautiful vintage cast iron palmette, elongated oval in shape, featuring a central rosette—stylised flower with radiating petals—surrounded by a rich decoration of scrolls, acanthus leaves, and raised pearls, in the purest 19th-century wrought iron style. The openwork reverse reveals the original fixings as well as traces of welding, confirming its function as an added piece on a grille or gate leaf. The dark patina and occasional material loss testify to its authenticity and prolonged outdoor exposure. These cast iron palmettes, produced in series in French art foundries at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century, traditionally adorned the centre of gate leaves, garden grilles, or balconies. Their floral and vegetal motif, inherited from the classical ornamental repertoire, embodies the era's taste for wrought iron that is both decorative and structural, combining technical expertise with aesthetic refinement.