French Rattan Sunburst Wall Mirror with Double Crown

Where the simplest rattan sunburst mirrors achieve their effect through a single ring of radiating reeds, this more refined example from circa 1970 introduces a second, outer crown of fine rattan spokes that extends beyond the inner woven band. The result is a composition of greater visual complexity and elegance: the eye travels first to the dense inner ring, where cane is tightly bound in concentric loops, and then outward to the airy, quill-like spokes of the outer halo, each one fanning to a tapered point. At 42 cm in diameter and just 1 cm deep, the mirror has the delicacy of a botanical illustration realised in natural fibre.

The double-crown construction required appreciably more craft skill and material than the standard sunburst form, and was favoured by the better French rattan workshops of the 1960s and ’70s as a mark of quality. The layered architecture of the frame creates a gentle shadow play on the wall behind, particularly in raking light, adding a sculptural dimension to what is already a highly decorative object. Rattan’s natural warmth — its honey and amber tones, its slight surface irregularity — ensures that no two examples age in quite the same way.

At 42 cm across, this mirror is ideally proportioned for a bathroom, bedroom, hallway, or any intimate space where a larger piece would overwhelm. Its circular form and organic material make it equally at home in a coastal interior, a country house, or an urban apartment drawn to natural textures. The 1970 dating places it in the mature phase of France’s rattan revival, when artisans had mastered the vocabulary of the form and were producing works of increasing refinement and structural sophistication.

A well-preserved example in naturally patinated rattan, this mirror carries the understated authority of a piece that knows exactly what it is: a small, beautifully made object designed to bring warmth, light, and handcrafted character to any wall it graces.