Cans & Tins

1950? Children's paintbox. "Le Renard et la Cigogne.” 9¾" x 3½" x ⅜". $37.74 from bercollec on Ebay, Feb., ‘21. I was amazed to find the first set in this series, and now I am more amazed to find a second. Again, sixpanels tell the story, another good one for little children. The sly fox makes his invitation in the first panel on the left. In the title-panel, the fox lounges watching the frustrated struggles of the stork. Soon he has an invitation in his hand, appeasrs in the next panel and then puts on his bib, full of expectation. The last panel paints the revenge scene well. Other than "Dessin depose," I can again find no information about the time or producer of this little paint tray. Almost all of the paint is still inside.

1950? Children's paintbox. "Le Cochet, le Chat, et le Souriceau." 9¾" x 3½" x ⅜". $50 from tincollectors@gmail.com, Jan., '20. Six panels tell this story, a good one for little children. The mouse sets off from home in the furthest left panel. In the title-panel, he meets two new creatures and is startled by them. Below, across three panels, he wonders about the two he encounters. In the fable, one is frightening for the red protuberance under his chin and his harsh voice. The other smiles so nicely and seems so welcoming. He realizes, in the last panel, with the help of his mother, that the smiling creature wants to eat him. The forbidding creature is warning him. Mice will even sometimes eat this creature. Other than "Dessin depose," I cannot find any information about the time or producer of this little paint tray. The brushes, paints, and paints' French names are still inside.

1950? Sirop Melangé Pomona syrup can featuring FS. Dutch (?) poetry and side panels of fox and stork. $15 from sunbeamavenger62 through Ebay, Feb., '23. Here is an older syrup can, so old that it can be hard to read text or image. This is another item whose shipping cost more than the item. The dress and accessories of both characters are lively!

1953? Sirop Melangé Pomona. Illustrating "The Cat, the Weasel, and the Hare." Art signed L. Ruymen/53. R.C. Verviers, Belgium, Sept., '08. This syrup tin presents the fable in engaging fashion. The top of the tin has the two disputants before the cat "Grippeminaud, le bon apôtre," seated on top of an inverted bushel-basket. The short sides show the three characters standing or sitting tall. The long sides reveal, in La Fontaine's French and in Walloon, that the cat "gets the two contestants in accord -- by munching on the one and the other."

1950? Pomona syrup can featuring MM. Dutch poetry and side panels of cow, pig, and pitcher. $50 from tincollectors@gmail.com, Jan., '20. Here is another lovely presentation of MM. The pitcher broke. The chicken, pig, and cow on the left remind us of her dreams. The poetry on the long side reads "Dance of Joy, There spills the milk. Calf and Cow, Pork and brood are gone." Click on the image to see the long and short sides as well as the top in fuller presentation.

1920? Set of 6 tin canisters displaying lithographs of La Fontaine Fables. Sugar tin for $50 from tincollectors@gmail.com, Jan., '20. The other 5 French tin canisters for $109.75 from petitbrocante through Etsy, Nov., '24. Now here is a surprise. Over four years ago, I found a single tin -- for sugar -- and have hoped since then to get others in the set. I finally got my wish, even though these five canisters have been through even more than the sugar tin had been through! Front faces display La Fontaine fables. Other faces and top have unnamed floral designs, ducks, and a bird. I wrote about the sugar tin that "I understand the French love for fables and for reminding themselves of them around the home. Still, would I want to be reminded of the wolf devouring the lamb every time I reached for sugar!" The other tins similarly do not provide comfort as I consider food!

1960? Belgian Cote d'Or chocolate tin. 4¼" x 3½" x 3¼" high. FC. $15 from Dany Wolfs, Roesalare, Belgium, April, '01. This blue tin presents FC well. On the cover is the decisive scene of the fox flattering and bowing. Just below is the scene, visible here, just prior to that moment, for here the crow is landing, and the alert fox takes notice of his arrival with the cheese. On the short side to the right the crow sings. On the longer side the fox, with cheese in paw, lectures the crow. On the last short side, the dejected crow weeps. The tin is in good condition. Dany tells me that this tin is hard to find.

1890? Carr and Co. Juvenile Biscuit Tin. Five numbered scenes from FC with rhyming verses. Carlisle, GB. 3" square by 4⅝". £22 from wickedlady, Yorkshire, UK, through eBay, Nov., '05. This cookie tin is highly corroded and so hard to read. The cover picture, first in the series, has a mother crow visiting a dairy to find food for her children. She then flies into a tree with a piece of cheese in her beak. The fifth and final scene may be the most dramatic: the fox runs away as the fox flies away. The art is nicely done, even through the darkening and discoloration.

Biscuiterie du Mistral cookie tin featuring an illustration of MM on its top and "Fables de La Fontaine" on its shorter sides. 9" x 9½".

Biscuiterie du Mistral cookie tin featuring an illustration of TH on its top and "Fables de La Fontaine" on its shorter sides. 9" x 9½".

Biscuiterie du Mistral cookie tin featuring an illustration of WL on its top and "Fables de La Fontaine" on its shorter sides. 9" x 9½".

Biscuiterie du Mistral cookie tin featuring an illustration of GGE on its top and "Fables de La Fontaine" on its shorter sides. 10" x 9".