Huge French Foundry Crucible c.1875A large wonderfully patinated Foundry Crucible from France. c. 1875. Crucibles were originally used for holding, heating and pouring molten metals within a Foundry. We can tell from the surface colour that this piece comes from a Cast iron Foundry. Nowhere was the popularity and use of cast iron ornament greater than France, where in the second half of the 19th Century two foundries dominated international production and export. The highly textured