In support of the "ink theory," there is a reference to a brown pottery
bottle with a pouring lip, a height of 8 3/8th inches, and it was impressed
"Antoine et Fils" in Sellari and Sellari's "Illustrated Price Guide of
Antique Bottles," published by Country Beautiful, Waukesha, Wisconsin, 1975.
They classify this bottle as an ink.  I wish I had a copy of William E.
Covill, Jr.'s "Ink Bottles and Ink Wells," 1971.  It's possible that Covill
discussed your bottle.
Allen Vegotsky
----- Original Message -----
From: "Alasdair Brooks" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, August 05, 2004 8:31 PM
Subject: Antoine & Fils


> I have a brown slip-glazed brown-bodied stoneware bottle,
> about 70mm base diameter (I don't have a complete profile,
> but base to shoulder is c.140mm), recovered in the 1980s
> from a coastal Victoria (Australia) site dating no earlier
> than 1843, and occupied into the 20th century.
>
> There's an impressed mark towards the base:
>
> "ENCRE JAPONAISE / ANTOINE & FILS"
>
> Would anyone have a date, or other relevant info, for
> Antoine & Fils?
>
> Searching the internet gets me 1) a similar bottle recovered
> from a monastery in Germany, but (as far as my extremely
> limited German can tell) with the Germans wondering what it
> is, and what it's doing there (I liked the breathtaking
> deductive logic [assuming accuracy of dodgy translation]
> 'speculation that the bottle contained ink is reinforced by
> the label 'Encre Japonaise'...) 2) a no-doubt delightful,
> but presumably irrelevant, Alsatian wine company, 3) a very
> long bookseller's catalogue of rare 18th century French
> books.
>
> Alasdair Brooks
>
>
>       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Dr.  Alasdair Brooks
> Material Culture Specialist / Lab Archaeologist
> SHA  Newsletter Current Research Editor for Australia/NZ
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> Thornbury, Vic  3071
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