Oscar de la Renta Home for Lunt Silverplate Ice Bucket with Tortoiseshell-Tone Handles, circa 2006

Story

A striking silver-plated ice bucket designed for Oscar de la Renta Home and produced by Lunt Silversmiths, with a beautifully flared rim, substantial stepped pedestal base and sculptural dark tortoiseshell-tone side handles.

The proportions are exceptionally good. The polished body rises from a weighty circular foot before opening gently at the rim, while the dark handles provide just enough contrast to keep the silver from feeling formal.

It is classic Oscar de la Renta: polished and glamorous, but with something warmer and slightly unexpected worked into the mix.

Originally intended for the bar, it has enough presence to work well beyond it — as a wine or champagne cooler, filled with flowers, or simply left empty on a sideboard.

Origin

Oscar de la Renta Home for Lunt Silversmiths, United States, circa 2006.

The Oscar de la Renta Home silver collection with Lunt debuted in the mid-2000s and included silver-plated tabletop and decorative objects. This example bears both the Oscar de la Renta Home and Lunt marks to the underside. Silver-plated metal with dark tortoiseshell-tone handles.

Condition

Excellent condition. The silver plate presents beautifully and has been freshly polished, with only light surface wear and fine scratches consistent with age and use. The handles are intact and secure. Interior shows minor age-appropriate patina and use.

Dimensions

9.25 in. H × approximately 10 in. W overall, handle to handle. Top diameter: 8 in. Base diameter: 6 in.

Sourcing Note

Found at an estate sale in New York City.

I saw the shape before I saw the mark. It was sitting among a pile of other things and could easily have been passed over. In fact, it was nearly black when I found it, with only flashes of silver showing through. But the wide flared rim, the weight of the base and those dark handles immediately caught my eye. Even under all that tarnish, it felt different from the usual silver ice bucket.

Once I turned it over and saw the Oscar de la Renta Home and Lunt marks, it made complete sense.

I have always had a soft spot for Oscar de la Renta. He dressed American First Ladies and, in my head, somehow became the great American king of style. When I was a kid, my parents gave me an Oscar de la Renta tie, and I coveted it like almost nothing else I owned. It was probably my first real glimpse into the idea that a name, a maker and a history could give an object meaning beyond its basic function.

Maybe that is part of why I have always been drawn to older things. Not because age alone makes something important, but because objects absorb stories. They hold onto the people who made them, chose them, used them and kept them. Finding this one beneath all that tarnish felt a little like uncovering that history again.

I brought it home, polished it, and watched the whole thing come back to life. It is glamorous without being precious — the kind of piece that makes a bar feel properly dressed, but looks just as good sitting empty on a table.