Antique Pot Racks Can Class Up A Kitchen
Pot racks are actually a crucial part of the kitchen for hundreds of years. For less affluent families, they were a way of maximizing storage space. For the wealthy, they were a way of organizing entire rooms containing cooking utensils. Examples of pot racks have been located dating back to the 15th century, although it wouldn’t be unexpected to find they were in use before this time.
Originally, pot racks could have simply been hooks hanging from the ceiling or wall. However, as time trickled by and it became possible to expend time decorating even the spaces used primarily by servants, like kitchens, pot racks became decorative and also functional pieces.
There are plenty of different kinds of antique pot racks that fall into two broad categories: wall racks and hanging pot racks. While hanging pot rack is the style most traditionally thought of today, wall racks can create a unique statement.
Wall racks were popular in large homes which can devote entire rooms to cooking utensils. From this beginning, their use expanded to include kitchens of moderately sized houses that needed to way to not only store pots but to show them as well. The antique wall rack typically is a board, sometimes embellished, ad fitted with hooks. The board is affixed to the wall, and pots hang on display there. Some wall racks have a metal board, but a majority are made of a wooden board affixed with metal hooks.
Hanging pot racks come in several styles. Some were originally designed as pot racks and typically exhibit a sturdy metal or, occasionally, wood base from which hooks hang. Others are more eclectic in feel due to the fact that, at some point throughout their storied existence, they were converted from chandeliers, fireplace grates, or other household furnishings. However, each makes a commanding statement when gleaming pots hang from it in the center of a kitchen.
Wall racks typically perform best in kitchens designed to have a country or cottage feel. Because of their wood finishes, and simple embellishments, most wall racks embody a style best suited for kitchens with a rustic design. The exception to this are metal wall racks, which can work well in a modern kitchen design if they are made of metal that has not yet oxidized greatly.
By contrast, antique hanging pot racks can work with numerous types of kitchen styles. Pieces exhibiting oxidized metal and intricate detailing can certainly produce a statement in a modern, stainless steel kitchen or a country hearth. Converted pot racks made from chandeliers, fireplace grates, and other furnishings are an effective way to make a statement in a monochromatic or otherwise simple space.
Whatever the type, an antique pot rack can produce a bold statement in any kitchen and supply dinner guests with an exceptional conversation piece.