Description:
English dark olive-green blown glass wine bottle with a shorter neck with an applied, flattened string rim and cylindrical body, typical of mid-century production, and an applied circular seal impressed "W. Ludlow", who was a prominent Revolutionary War figure in western Massachusetts and for whom a town is named. In the 18th century, bottles were the most common and often the only glass forms used in Connecticut Valley households. George Sheldon donated a "Black Bottle. Used in the Sheldon family exclusively for best company rum." to PVMA. Two glass bottles were listed in the 1690 inventory of Benjamin Barrett (1653-1690) of Deerfield, who is described by George Sheldon as a "carpenter and soldier under Capt. Turner, 1676." Personalized bottles with seals (glob of glass impressed with a name/date), such as this example, cost the consumer up to 1 1/2 times as much as the unmarked versions. In the early 17th century, English glass manufacturers perfected a "black glass" that was suitable for making sturdy bottles for the domestic and export market. The dark color of the glass (a result of iron impurities in the sand source and the sulfurous fumes from the coal to fire the glass furnace) protected the contents from spoilage. Wine bottle was a generic term, for such bottles held porter, ale, beer, distilled liquors, fortified wines, and a variety of spirits. English bottles typically have a dark olive-green color, large sandy pontil mark, high kick or push-up base, thick walls, and an applied string finish to the lip.
Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+59.258 |
