A French Butter Dish, sometimes calle a "French butter keeper", "French butter crock" or "butter bell" is used to keep butter fresh and soft without refrigeration. This 19th century French-designed pottery crock holds the butter packed in its lid (where it is held by surface tension), and water is added to the base. The water creates an airtight seal that keeps oxygen away from the butter so that refrigeration is not needed, and the butter can be used in its soft form.