Anyone recognise this design?
By Fleur
@Fleura (34927)
United Kingdom
March 2, 2021 9:51am CST
As I’ve mentioned before, when I’m out and about I often end up picking up litter. I used to just walk past tut-tutting to myself about how disgusting some people are - but finally I decided I would do something about it and clear it up.
So now I try to remember to keep a spare bag in my pocket, and also in my bicycle basket, so if I pass something that needs clearing up I can do so. The other day I filled both the baskets on my bicycle, one with actual ‘rubbish’ (packets from cigarettes, sandwiches and the like) and the other with recycleable cans and bottles.
I stuffed the rubbish into a roadside litter bin, but the rest I brought home and washed it so it could go in the recycling (luckily we virtually never actually fill our bin, so there is always room).
A couple of the bottles I picked up had obviously been there for some time, and were half-full of mud and algae. I was just washing those when I looked at this one and wondered what it had contained. I can’t quite figure out what this embossed design is, and it isn’t anything I recognise. At first I thought it was a fish emerging from water, with a fishing line and rod - but then I realised that the ‘rod’ had a blade more like a poleaxe, and the ‘fish’ could be an arm emerging from the waves - kind of like the Lady of the Lake?
There isn’t any kind of name on the sides, but on the bottom it says ‘DEPOSE 55’.
Does anyone recognise this, maybe as the logo of some kind of spirits/liquor? I've tried a bit of online searching but haven't come up with anything at all useful!
All rights reserved. © Text and image copyright Fleur 2021.
10 people like this
9 responses
@Tampa_girl7 (54714)
• United States
2 Mar 21
It does look like it’s an arm. It’s a really a cool looking bottle. Maybe an antique ?
5 people like this
@Tampa_girl7 (54714)
• United States
2 Mar 21
The bottle in picture I put here is called Sir Donald of the Glen.
4 people like this
@owlwings (43897)
• Cambridge, England
2 Mar 21
The stamp is quite clearly the crest of some coat of arms. Real crests were originally worn on the helmet of a suit of armour mainly so that people could recognise the guy inside the helmet. They were then also included in the full achievement of the armorial bearings (or 'coat of arms').
This crest is fairly common and might be described as something like "[colour]. Arm dexter, armed, bowed holding a battle-axe " 'Dexter' because it's a right arm, 'armed' because it's wearing armour, 'bowed' meaning bent at the elbow.
'Deposé' suggests that the bottle is French and I think that it means that it was the registered [design or pattern number] 55, which would have made it easier for the glass factory to produce re-orders of that pattern.
As such, it probably held brandy - Cognac or Armagnac - and the crest would be part of the arms of the family which produced it.
It looks to be rather an attractive bottle which would look good as an ornament and lit from below or behind.
3 people like this
@owlwings (43897)
• Cambridge, England
3 Mar 21
@Fleura That catalogue is excellent! I think yours is more like the second one in the "1a No indication" row because there's just the logo and the bevelled sides except that yours had a cork. It's sort of between the two. really.
Still no indication of date. I'm going to guess 1st half of 20th Century. I think that screw caps for spirits began to come in in the '50s or '60s.
You can easily check the size of the bottle by filling with water and measuring it. They do seem to have made a 20cl size, which is midway between a 1/3 and 1/4 bottle.
https://cognac-ton.nl/overige/flessen-a/hennessy-bottles-70cl-and-up/
1 person likes this
@Fleura (34927)
• United Kingdom
2 Mar 21
That's all very useful, thanks. You are right, 'Depose' means 'registered' in this context (I looked up more info after you explained that) so it must have been French. I am hoping @topffer might be able to shed a bit of light on it, perhaps! And yes it is quite a nice design, and now that I know what it is it seems really clear!
2 people like this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104615)
• United States
2 Mar 21
That's curious.
I see where it looks like an arrow, but to my eye it looked sort of like a bird at the top right.
It's likely an old medicine bottle of some sort. Less likely spirits, but still wouldn't rule that out.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104615)
• United States
2 Mar 21
@Fleura Yes, I can see that now.
The more I look, it sort of looks like it's meant to represent a man with his arm's extended and his back arched backwards to throw the weapon.
1 person likes this
@BelleStarr (61463)
• United States
3 Mar 21
lol Well since it is cognac, at least the literer is a person of taste lol
1 person likes this
@DaddyEvil (174208)
• United States
2 Mar 21
No, I don't recognize that. Have you figured it out yet?
1 person likes this
@DaddyEvil (174208)
• United States
2 Mar 21
@Fleura I saw that and wondered but haven't seen Top in a couple of days. I hope he can tell you something.
2 people like this
