Great Shabby-Chic Decoration for Kitchen, Family Room, or Den...or for a Gourmet Shop.... Rare early 20th century embossed tin sign advertising the products of Claudot-Deschandeliers in Ruffec (a town in the Charente department between Poitiers and Angoulême). It was clearly designed to hang in the windows of grocery and gourmet shops. It is eye-catching and brightly colored with gilt borders...

Absinthe era saucer from a French bar with a burgundy rim. This is an actual saucer from the late 19th or very early 20th century that was used in a bar in the Charente Martime departement in the Southwest of the country. It measures 4 7/8 inches in diameter. There is some wear to the rim decoration from long years of use. The back is glazed. There are a couple of small chips on the inside of the foot but they are really not noticeable when it is on a table or other flat surface...

French absinthe era bar saucer decorated with a light blue rim enclosed in burgundy hairlines and an attractive raised interior. We actually know the bar where this was used -- it was the Café de Paris in Saintes, a small city in the Charente-Maritime départment of France, which is about 75 miles north of Bordeaux. A scan of a postcard depicting this establishment will be sent to you on request...

We just got this great octagonal bistrot or absinthe saucer in France. It has a wonderful, bold price of 1.50 francs, a raised star (rare) in the center, and a silvered border which is somewhat worn. There is a small silver circle, also worn, in the center, making this a very elegant and high-end saucer. The saucer has a Limoges mark as well as the mark of J. Laplaine, Ste Livrade sur Lot, possibly the wholesaler...

Bin labels were used to identify sections or bins in wine cellars. This is a vintage French enamel on metal bin label, dating from the early 1900’s, for CHAMPAGNE. Bin labels for champagne are among the most desirable. It was used for decades and shows some chipping to the enamel (which is usual on enamel labels, especially around the holes where nails were used to affix them). On this one there is some in-painting to some of the damage on some letters...

Antique blown glass topette with three rings from an old French bar. Each ring represented a dose, or one drink, of absinthe, which was diluted with water, often poured over a sugar cube, before drinking. The bar patron was charged for however many doses he or she consumed. This topette was hand blown in heavy lead glass and has a nice polished pontil on the bottom. This one is 4 3/8 inches tall and dates from about 1900 or earlier. It is a handsome collectible from the Belle Epoque.

This is the first time we have had a yellow topette, the special type of decanter used in a French bar to serve measured doses of absinthe. The drinker was charged for the number of doses consumed. This one is molded and probably dates from the later years of the absinthe era or a bit later when it might have been used for other drinks that were diluted with water such as pastis or gentian flavored potions. It is 9 3/4 inches tall.

Antique blown glass topette with eight rings from an old French bar. Each ring represented a dose, or one drink, of absinthe, which was diluted with water, often poured over a sugar cube, before drinking. The bar patron was charged for however many doses were consumed. This topette was hand blown in heavy lead glass, has a nice polished pontil on the bottom and shows the wear marks on the bottom one likes to see on antique pieces...

Antique blown glass topette from an old French bar holding three doses or portions. Each ring represented a dose, or one drink, of absinthe, which was diluted with water, often poured over a sugar cube, before drinking. The bar patron was charged for however many doses he or she consumed. This topette was hand blown in heavy lead glass and has a nice partially polished pontil on the bottom. This one is 4 inches tall and dates from about 1900 or earlier...

Rare antique glass from a French bar used to serve absinthe. This style is known as an East glass because it was supposedly used in the East of France, in areas around Lyon. This is a heavy, hand-blown glass with a polished pontil. It has a dose mark marking the level to which it was filled with absinthe. Water was added to the liquor, making a cloudy drink. I personally like the glasses with dose marks because you can be sure they were used for a drink like absinthe to which water was added...

Antique blown glass topette with original stopper from an old French bar holding three doses or portions. Each ring represented a dose, or one drink, of absinthe, which was diluted with water, often poured over a sugar cube, before drinking. The bar patron was charged for however many doses he or she consumed. This topette was hand blown in heavy lead glass, has a nice polished pontil on the bottom. This one is 5 1/4 inches tall to the top of the stopper, and dates from about 1900 or earlier...

Antique blown glass topette with original stopper from an old French bar holding two doses or portions...