Fabry & Rozot French Porcelain “Siphoïde” System Inkwell

This inkwell is a remarkable example of 19th-century office engineering, utilizing a pressure-based system to regulate ink flow.

Physical Description

• Materials and Style: The inkwell features a cylindrical white porcelain body decorated with a lilac-pink frieze of scrollwork motifs and gold trim.
• Mounting: The mechanical parts are made of gilded brass and include two hinged lids on top.
• Components: It consists of a large main reservoir at the rear and a small, funnel-shaped dipping bucket at the front.

Markings

The inscriptions on the lids confirm the object’s origin and technology:

• Small Lid (Front): “ENCRIER POMPE / CF & GR / PARIS / BREVETE S.G.D.G.“.
  • CF & GR: These are the initials for Charles Fabry and Germain Rozot, the Parisian inventors and manufacturers of this system.
  • Brevété S.G.D.G.: This stands for Breveté Sans Garantie Du Gouvernement (Patented Without Government Guarantee), a French legal requirement used from 1844 to 1968 indicating the state did not guarantee the invention’s function.
• Large Lid (Rear): “ENCRIER A RESSORT / FERMETURE A GLACE / CF & Cie / A PARIS“.
  • Fermeture à Glace: This system, invented by Charles Fabry, refers to an extremely precise “mirror” closure (like polished glass) that ensures a perfect airtight seal. On this piece, the original glass seal was broken and has been replaced by a rubber gasket to maintain that airtight integrity.

How It Functions: The Siphoïde Principle

Although it is marked as a “pump” (pompe) inkwell, it actually functions as a syphon (or siphoïde) based on the principle of communicating vessels.

1. Filling: You pour the ink into the opening located under the largest lid at the back.
2. Priming: Through the principle of communicating vessels, the ink naturally flows to the small front bucket until it reaches an equilibrium level.
3. Vacuum Seal: Once the large rear lid is closed, the “fermeture à glace” creates a perfect airtight seal. This creates a partial vacuum above the ink in the main reservoir, which prevents the ink from overflowing out of the small front bucket despite the pressure from the main tank.
4. Refilling the Bucket: When the front dipping bucket is empty, you simply open the large rear lid. The introduction of air breaks the vacuum, allowing ink from the reservoir to flow forward again and refill the funnel-shaped bucket.

This ingenious system allowed for a large ink supply to be stored while exposing only a tiny surface area to the air, which significantly reduced evaporation and kept the ink free from dust.

Date of Manufacture

The patent for this “Fermeture à Glace” (Mirror Closure) system was filed by Charles Fabry in the early 1890s, the peak era for these mechanical “system” inkwells.

Specific Patent Dates

Two key patents cover the technology found on your inkwell:

• The Closure Mechanism: Charles Fabry filed the patent for the “Fermeture à Glace” on November 14, 1890 (French Patent No. 209,475). This patent specifically described the high-precision, airtight seal that allows the vacuum-syphon system to function without leaking.
• The Full Inkwell System: A subsequent patent for the “Encrier Pompe” (Pump Inkwell) design, which included the dual-chamber syphon system was filed by the partners Charles Fabry and Germain Rozot on September 25, 1891 (French Patent No. 216,368).

Why the Date is Significant

• Era of Innovation: These dates place this inkwell at the height of the Belle Époque, a period in Paris defined by rapid technological advancement and ornate decorative arts.
• Patent Protection: The marking “Brevété S.G.D.G.” on the lid refers to these specific filings, indicating that the inventors had secured their legal rights but that the French government did not formally guarantee the device’s efficacy.
• Production Timeline: Because of these filing dates, this piece was likely manufactured between 1892 and 1905. By the start of World War I, production of such elaborate mechanical inkwells began to decline in favor of more portable writing tools.