Jennifer Johns writes: I have a knife that was brought from Germany after WWII. One side simply states Apenta. The other side states Apollinaris. It's a 2 bladed folding pocket knife. Would you have any idea the history, and if not, where we can find the history?

Ron: As you have not included a picture of your advertising knife it is difficult to comment. The tang of the blade should be marked with the manufacturer's name which may help date the item and indicate where in Germany it was manufactured. Information on various knives can be found in an excellent series of knife reference books called Levine's Guide to Knives. Below is a picture of a late 19th century Apollinaris bottle marked "APOLLINARIS NATURAL MINERAL WATER RHENISH PRUSSIA, GERMANY" with a scene of a bubbling spring with foliage and birds overhead, also marked "Sole Agents THE APOLLINARIS COMPANY LIMITED, 19 Regent Street LONDON S.W."

In 1852 Georg Kreuzberg in Germany founded the Apollinaris Mineral Water Company in Germany at the site of a non-productive vineyard. As early as 1873 the water sprang to International fame as a result of the founding of The Apollinaris Company Limited in London. Today the company is a leading exporter of German mineral water under the name Apollinaris & Schweppes GmbH & Co.

Apenta was founded in Budapest, Hungary in the 19th Century. The water is still bottled by Apenta Mineral Water and Soft Drinks Ltd.

A bottle cap lifter advertising Apollinaris on one side and Apenta on the other. The point is to render the cap unusable after opening.

This advertising combination pocket piece is marked Apollinaris and DRGM just above the point on the cap lifter. It also has a slot for opening an internal threaded bottle stopper.