Overview
A striking pair of Italian travertine ashtrays from the 1970s — one round, one square — each fitted with a removable polished metal dish. Two sculptural, architectural objects carved from warm, naturally veined travertine, substantial in size and rich in material character.
 
Description
This pair embodies the refined, material-driven taste of 1970s Italian design, when travertine — the noble Roman stone — was reinterpreted into bold decorative objects for the modern interior.
Each piece is carved from a solid block of natural travertine, left unfilled so that the stone's characteristic open pores and warm ivory-to-honey veining remain fully expressed. The two share the same architectural language but differ in geometry: one is round, with a softly bowed, column-base profile; the other is square, with a stepped, cornice-like moulded edge. At the centre of each sits a removable round metal dish, designed to be lifted out for cleaning.
Shown together, the round and the square form a balanced, sculptural dialogue.
 
Design & Function
Conceived as generously sized table objects, they work equally well as ashtrays or as vide-poches and catch-alls for keys, jewellery and small everyday items, with the metal insert protecting the porous stone. Their weight and solidity give them a reassuring, almost monumental presence on a desk, console, coffee table or bar.
Beyond function, they read as miniature architectural fragments — plinths and column bases translated to desktop scale.
 
Materials & Aesthetic
The appeal lies in the honest pairing of natural travertine and cool metal: the warm, tactile, open-grained stone set against the reflective dish. The unfilled surface, with its voids and fossil veining, gives each piece a unique, organic character.
This sensibility — raw stone elevated into refined, minimal forms — is typical of Italian production in the 1970s, in the spirit of makers such as Fratelli Mannelli and the broader Tuscan and Roman travertine workshops.
 
Technical Details
Product: Pair of Italian Travertine Ashtrays / Vide-Poches, round and square, 1970s
Designer: Unattributed (Italian manufacture)
Manufacturer: Italian production, in the manner of Fratelli Mannelli — unmarked
Period: 1970s
Materials: Natural unfilled travertine; removable polished metal dishes
Dimensions: Round — Diameter 19cm | Height 4cm.
Square — Width 18cm | Depth 18cm | Height 4cm
Condition: Please note that this item is in good vintage condition. The travertine is solid and intact; its open pores, voids and veining are natural characteristics of unfilled travertine, not damage. Minor surface marks and small natural chips to the edges may be present, consistent with the stone and its age. The removable metal dishes show patina and oxidation consistent with age and use (one brighter, one darker). We kindly invite you to take these characteristics into consideration before purchasing.
Functionality: Two ashtrays / catch-alls, each with a removable metal dish
 
Collectibility
1970s Italian travertine objects are highly sought after by collectors and interior designers for their material warmth and sculptural, architectural quality. Offered here as a matched pair of complementary forms — round and square — they make a versatile and decorative statement, at home in both classic and contemporary interiors.
 
Designer & Manufacturer
These ashtrays belong to the rich Italian tradition of 1970s travertine objects, when workshops — most famously Fratelli Mannelli, alongside other Italian stone ateliers — turned the classical Roman stone into bold, minimal home accessories. Although unsigned, this pair is a characteristic and well-made example of that production, prized today for its timeless combination of natural stone and modern form.