This balancing scale was in the apartment of Daniele’s Aunt Henriette in Nancy. Daniele lived with her during the school week from the age of about 6 through age 16.
She recalls fondly the wonderful cakes and pies that her aunt made measuring precisely the weight of the flour and butter and sugar.
The molds belonged to Daniele’s grandmother who lived in Domevre, France. They were used for baking cakes. Both ladies made wonderful pies often using Mirabel plums picked fresh in season at the small family orchard in that Lorraine town.
(Editor’s note: Palisades resident Howard Yonet has an interesting collection of curios from around the world and with his permission, Circling the News is publishing one a week. About the collector: Dr. Howard Yonet was born in Brooklyn in 1934 and attended Brooklyn College. He went to Baylor Medical School and then returned to do an internship at Bellevue Hospital. Yonet completed his residency at the Manhattan V.A. and the Montefiore Hospital. During this time he went skiing in Vermont and the Catskills, and while traveling found barns filled with early American pieces. This led to his interest in American Antiques.
In 1965, he married Daniele, who was originally from Nancy, France. During the Vietnam War, Yonet was drafted as a medical officer and stationed in Landstuhl, Germany (1966-1969). This was close to the French border, which meant he and Daniele and could visit her family.
While abroad, the Yonets took weekend trips through France and Italy, purchasing many interesting pieces at flea markets.
The family settled in Pacific Palisades in 1970 and Yonet practiced general radiology until 2006. He continued to acquire antiques and collectables at estate and garage sales and the Salvation Army Store. He also enjoyed looking for collectibles while traveling in Montana, Idaho, Colorado and Massachusetts. Daniele’s family helped add to his collection.)
My Mother had very similar molds. She was a good baker and I remember the “yummy” smell in the house when I came home from school…good memories.