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Complete
Your
BOTTLE BIBLE Library!!
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entire collection
all the previous editions,
1 through 6!
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Now!
e-mail : bottleking@earthlink.net
web site: www.bottlebible.com
Phone/Fax:
(562) 438-9209
Mail: PO Box 30328
Long Beach, CA 90853
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-
-
- Q:
How long have glass bottles been around?
- A:
The glass bottle has been around for about 3,000
years. In the
late 1st century
-
B.C., the Romans began making glass vials that
doctors and pharmacists
-
used to dispense pills, healing powders, and other
potions. The
vials were 3
-
to 4 inches long, very narrow, and a small stone
rolled in tar was used as a
-
stopper. During the 2nd century B.C., Roman glass was
free-blown with metal
-
blowpipes and shaped with tongs or formed using
molds.
-
- Q:
When did glass manufacturing start in America?
- A: In 1608 the London Company
constructed a glass house at Jamestown in the
- Colony of Virginia which failed.
A second attempt was made in 1621 which
- resulted in failure. Caspar Wistar established the
first successful American
- glass house in 1739 In Salem County, New Jersey.
-
- Q:
How can you identify the age of an antique bottle?
- A: There are three common
methods: Mold
Seams, Bottle Base- Pontil marks or
- Smooth, and Color variations.
-
- Q:
What are the factors in determining the value of an antique
bottle?
- A: There are five criteria
that should be reviewed:
- Color - The most valuable
bottles are Green, Amber, Puce,
-
Purple (Amethyst) and Cobalt Blue.
Note: There
are many
-
variations of these colors that can affect the value
of the bottle.
- Age, condition, and historical
appeal.
- Rarity, supply, and demand
- Embossing, labeling, and
design
- Pontil Marks, whittle marks,
imperfections, and slug plates
-
- Q: Are there any other methods of identification?
- A:
Trademarks which usually appear on the bottom of the
bottle and sometimes
- on the label, or at the front base of the bottle.
-
- Q:
What is Sick Glass?
- A: Glass showing a superficial
decay or deterioration that takes on a grayish
- Tinge caused by erratic firing.
-
- Q: What are Whittle Marks?
- A:
Marks found on bottles formed from carved wood molds.
Similar marks
- were also formed on hot glass poured early in the
morning in cold molds.
- The cold molds created ?goose pimples? on the
surface of the glass and as
- the molds warmed, the bottles became smoother.
-
- Q:
Where can I find old bottles?
- A: Digging in pre-1900 Ghost
Town dumps, Outhouses, Ravines, abandoned
- mines (Be extremely careful), beneath old houses and
porches, near old
- railroad tracks, Antique & Bottle Shows,
Auctions, Estate Sales, Antique
- shops, Cisterns, Wells, Flea Markets, Second Hand
stores, and the Internet.
-
- Q.
Any special rules when digging for bottles?
- A. 1. Always
be responsible, respectful, and ask for permission to dig.
-
2. When the digging is completed, always leave the site looking
better than
- when you started.
-
3. Do
not, under any circumstances, go digging alone.
My recommendation
- is to go with no fewer that three people, and be sure
to tell someone
- exactly where you're going and how long you expect to
be gone.
  
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