Sardine dish, hand-painted majolica

Text on the middle part of the plate : "Il pourrait arriver qu'en cette sardinière /  On servit sans façon le poisson d'un confrère / Mais pour les délicats point n'est besoin des yeux / Ils goûtent : ce n'est pas du vrai "Frères Amieux".
(*" It might happen that in this sardine plate / Colleague's fish was served homely / But for tasty people, no eyes are needed / They taste and know: it is not real "Frères Amieux".)

Amieux Frères was a family brand created in 1866 and specialized in sardine canning. The brand owned several factories in France (Brittany and Vendée). The firm won its first gold medal at the Paris' Great Exhibition of 1878. The company was very successful until 1974 when they were bought by a bigger brand but the name was kept and is still used today. 

Périssère, Michèle. “Amieux, conserveur nantais : un exemple de patronat social”. de Bonnault-Cornu, Phanette, et al.. Cultures du travail : Identités et savoirs industriels dans la France contemporaine. Paris : Éditions de la Maison des sciences de l’homme, 1989. (pp. 107-122) [en ligne]