Old Glass Antique Bottles
78Glass vintage bottles of days long gone
Antique bottles, usually made from glass, are very collectable and can return a good profit if you know what to look for. Antique bottles are made from sand, ash or limestone and require great furnace heat to melt the glass, usually in a foundry nowadays. The shape, age, condition, color and year manufactured will govern a bottle's antique status. Glass breakage occurs sometimes when a ‘waterhammer effect’ occurs, best described if you imagine a dropped bottle that is half full of water. The water impacts the glass severely when the glass hits the floor causing instant breakage. The volume of liquid moving within the container causes the damage. Be very very careful when handling broken glass and use protactive gloves to avoid splinters and cuts. Always protect your antique old bottles against breakage by investing in storage containers that protect the fragile glass containers.
Old Bottle Mixed glass selection
Antique bottles for sale
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Colorful Lot of 7 Blown and Embossed Antique Bottles ca. 1880s-1900
Current Bid: $8.50
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Perky-Pet 8108-2 Green Antique Bottle 10-Ounce Glass Hummingbird Feeder
Current Bid: $21.83
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Antique Bottles Reference
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Old aged bottles
Old aged bottles are antiques
How old is a bottle before it is deemed antique? Does its color matter or enhance its value. What about the shape and size too as some of them are minute in size especially fragrance and perfume bottles. Found in laboratories all over the world, chemistry bottles are also often antiques.
Places you might discover antique bottles
Buried in the garden, floating in the sea, abandoned on waste ground, in old houses or deserted areas. Care is needed when an antique bottle is found due to the fragile nature of the glass as some of the older ones are brittle and need extreme care. In extreme circunstances you may come across an unbroken bottle!
Antique Bottle History
Before the introduction of glass bottles ceramic bottles were commonly in use. These were impossible to clean as the remnants of their previous contents were not visible and consequently were thought to be extremely unhygienic. Many ceramic bottles nowadays are considered to be antiques and sell for large sums of money. They often came with the name of the company or distributor embossed on the side and in a variety of different sizes. Vintage Coca Cola bottles are a recognised symbol all over the world.
Information on different types of glass bottle seams
If the glass bottle does not have a seam at all it is likely that it was free blown which dates it around 1850 or before. Its shape will not be regular or flat. If it has an even shape then it will be later than mid 17th century due to a spinning technique which evens out the glass.
A bottle with a side seam that stops just before the top of the bottle is likely to have been blown in a mold.
Machined Glass
Some bottles will have been made in a 3 piece mold with the bottom section not having any seam at all (it would look like a tumbler). The 2 top sections (equal pieces) will have been attached creating a seam around the full shoulder of the bottle. A seam will then run up both sides of the bottle from the circular shoulder seam to the top.
A bottle made by machine will have the seams running all the way to the top. Machine made bottles started to be manufactured at the beginning of the twentieth century. The inventor who made the breakthrough with his automatic bottle blowing machine was Michael J. Owens (US).
Bottle brush
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Cleaning antique glass
Cleaning antique glass bottles properly
Many antique glass bottles have the advantage of being able to boil off dirt and impurities without damaging the bottle. Glass is the safest and most environmentally friendly bottle available today.
Hobbies
If you become interested in collecting bottles then I suggest that you join a local club. If there is a bottle club available in your area you will learn a great many things about glass cleaning and glass protection from your new found friends. It is a sure fire way to amass a lot of knowledge about your hobby in the quickest time possible.
Evolution
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Small vintage glass bottles
Antique glass baby bottles
All glass baby bottles are made of toughened glass and are heat resistant. When clear glass bottles arrived, they took the guesswork out of cleaning. Bottles were cast in metal, ceramic or even wooden casts were sometimes used.
Factory location
Glass factories were sited near any silica sand natural resources. The Romans used beach sand and this was the main component of Roman glass.
Rare Antique Bottles
Rarer Antique Bottles
Some bottles from companies are rarer than others. Look out for Ayers, Caspers, Walkers Grape Juice, any antique Codd Bottles, old Coca-cola and Pepsi bottles or the rarer bottles from Seedsman. View the separate antique bottle article on Seedsman & Son of Maldon Victoria. .
Antique auction prices
Bottle capacity and color
Bottles are measured in fluid capacity i.e 4oz bottle or 8oz bottle. Older bottles are usually green in color and square in shape and were stoppered by a cork or a fixed glass ball. They were primarily used for holding bitters, patent medicines and herbal remedies.
Old bottles from the 1800’s can sell for more than a $2000 at auction.
Clean Old Bottles
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Antique Glass Cleaners
Antique bottle appraisal improves with cleaning
The key question of how much is my bottle worth is something that all collectors always want to know and sometimes the simple matter of cleaning the bottle will increase its value. If you have an old bottle that perhaps contained poison, chemicals, bitters or other potentially harmful liquids then extra care will be required when handling the bottle during cleaning. If the simple technique of using warm soapy water fails then you may need to revert to using a chemical cleaner.
Chemical use?
Do not use strong acids (hydrochloric or sulfuric acid) because you must remain safe at all times and only experts should use such chemical acids. The other drawback with strong acid use is that the delicate glass of the bottle antique could suffer irreparable damage. If in doubt, then get the bottle cleaned by a professional. One acid commonly found in commercial powdered cleansers is Oxalic acid which is good for removing rust and bleaching old bottles of inks and colored medicinal residues. Great care is still required when using this somewhat less harmful acid.
Antique Insurance
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Insuring antiques
Insuring Old Bottles
The reason for cleaning is that the value of the antique will be greatly enhanced especially if one intends to offer a bottle for sale at a bottle auction. Knowing its value is important for insurance purposes. Once you have the bottle appraised for its value you may deem it wise to have it professionally cleaned but do make sure that you use a reputable company, especially if the bottle is of rare origin.
Antique glass
Do make sure that you have adequately insured the old bottle too for its full replacement value (if it can be replaced). You cannot depend on normal home contents insurance which may not cover antiques of this type or other glass objects such as stained glass artworks or antique glass vases and urns. Smaller glass items also need to be insured too as there are some very valuable glass marbles in collections throughout the world.
Medicine Antique Bottle
Starting your antique bottle collection
Starting off an antique bottle collection
Antique bottle digging
To start you off you will need
1. A minimum of six different glass or ceramic antique bottles
2. A bottle brush and soft cloth for cleaning
3. A small trowel for digging and unearthing buried antique treasures
4. Wet wipes to take off the worst of the dirt from the antique bottles
Antique Trader Books
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Antique bottle images
Glass Baby Bottles and more Antiques
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Comments on old glass antiquesLoading...
Thank you so much for your comments. You have not posted any hubs yet but I hope to see some of your bottle hubs here soon on hubpages with some nice photographs (if possible) of your ‘dug’ antique bottles, even if they are not antiques at all, but just really unusual color glass bottles that you have found for your collection. I am sure they are treasured just the same.
I recently found a pepsi bottle with the date 1955 molded in the glass on the bottom. Can some one tell me about it?
Thank you Dave, for your comments. Pepsi antique bottles are made from a darker glass than newer ones. It would not be possible to read a piece of paper through an antique Pepsi bottle. Another thing to look out for is the thickness of the neck of the bottle which is thinner in diameter than the newer bottles. The Pepsi name pre the mid 1950s was Pepsi-Cola so this is another check and your bottle may have this stamped on it. Hope this is somewhat useful.
Re: Pepsi bottle. The name Pepsi Cola is molded into the glass as well as "Pepsi Cola Company of Canada 15-1955 . The label was printed right the glass, no paper label.
I think perhaps that your bottle is too ‘new’ to be of great monitory value. Another factor is the rarity which in the case of a company like Pepsi is not going to so good as thousands of bottles were produced. It might be worth $10 but don’t take my word on it as this is just my opinion. Generally speaking bottles manufactured from 1920 onwards were made by machine and have minimal value to the collector despite being antique bottles. Do some more research and attend (or join) a bottle club in your area. Let me know if you discover that it is worth a fortune. I hope it is. Good luck.
Thank you for your insight. I'm actually not as interested in the value of the Pepsi-Cola bottle I am just curious as to how old it might be.Maybe you could tell me when they started molding their brand name into the glass and when they stopped.
Hi Dave, I never knew how many Pepsi antique bottles were out there. I cannot answer your question with enough authority because there is such a glut of information available, particularly on the history of Pepsi, but not so particularly on their several bottling plants. I tried an image search on Google too which produced over half a million images using the term ‘pepsi bottle’ in the search field. If you try this you may find an image match for your bottle, which might then lead to more information. Some antique bottle books are available too but they are expensive (and maybe not Pepsi specific) but the library might be a resource worth checking. Sorry I couldn’t help more. Good luck searching (and digging).
i recently have retrieved over 100 glass bottles,some baby,milk,liqour and medicine.looking to research and sell due to lack of work.is there a price guide out thay may help me?i like youre site and give u a thumbs up.i dont have a e mail currently but will visit u again.
Hi Johnny,
Thank you for your comments. The best web site in my opinion is at www.antiquebottles.com which allows you to ask question (and receive answers) from various experts in antique bottles. There is a lot of information to be found on this site as well as hundreds of antique bottle photographs plus auction information and I found it to be very informative. You will also find links to several Antique Bottle Clubs which might be of interest to you.
I recently purchased a piece of glass that is sort of like a drinking glass at the bottom but the top is cut out like jack-o-lantern teeth. Do you have any ideas on what it is or where I can look to find out?
Thank you for your comments. The best web site in my opinion is at www.antiquebottles.com which allows you to ask question (and receive answers) from various experts in antique bottles and glassware. There is a lot of information to be found on this site as well as hundreds of antique bottle photographs plus auction information and I found it to be very informative. You will also find links to several Antique Bottle Clubs which might be of interest to you.
HEY I FOUND THIS GLASS THAT WAS MADE IN THE 1900S AND I WAS WONDERING IF ITS WORTH SOME MONEY. THE DATE THAT WAS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE BOTTLE WAS DATED IN THE 1900S.
Thank you for your comment. The best web site in my opinion is at www.antiquebottles.com which allows you to ask question (and receive answers) from various experts in antique bottles and glassware. Search this site to see if you can match your bottle type.
I am renovating an old building circa 1743, at on e time a pharmacy, i have found many old bottles, one in particular is marked on the bottom "Walker Grape Juice", no seams and numerous air bubbles, about 7oz. any ideas.
Walker Grape Juice was always packaged in a very distinctive ‘ten pin’ bottle just like a skittle or ten pin bowling pin. I did see a vintage one in good condition, with glass bubbles, for sale last year for only $10. I don’t know what year it was manufactured and yours might be a lot older so don’t take my word for its value. Bring it to a local collector to have it properly valued.
Walker Grape Juice company was sold to Welch's Grape Juice in 1911. William Homer Walker owned the company which was located in North East, PA. After selling the company, he later started the First Federal Savings and Loan in Miami, FL. His family also owned Erie Printing and Lithographic Company in Erie, PA.
Hi Julia. Thank you for this useful information on antique bottles, and in particular on the Walker Grape Juice bottle history.
Hi,
This is Marybelle Beigh, Westfield NY Historian. I received a letter from a local grape farmer who had been given a bottle of grape juice that was Barber Grape Juice in a Julep Bottling Works Westfield NY bottle. I've not seen or heard of this particular brand or bottling works, although I know there were several bottling works on North Portage Street Westfield NY in the late 1800s and early 1900s, other than the usual names of grape juice companies such as Welch, Fenner, Armour, Walker, etc. Any information about either Barber Grape Juice or Julep Bottling Works Westfield NY would be much appreciated. westfieldhistorian@fairpoint.net
Nice hub. Love colored glass, have an green glass vase I picked up in West Virginia in the '70 but I don't find any markings. The color is wonderful.
Hi Marybelle,
Thank you for your question. I would advise you to research for this information at the world famous Corning Museum of Glass (known as CMOG, as they have the finest collection of research materials relating to glass). Valuable information can be accessed from their historical library section. Address below:
Rakow Research Library
5 Museum Way, Corning, NY 14830
(607) 974-8649
rakow@cmog.org
Hi Medor, Thank you for your comments. I love antique glass, especially colored vases and bottles. Its the beauty of the item, rather than its value, that is important to me.
I have 467,567 bottles currently in my collection and I am always looking for more to round of my collection to a neat half a million, please let me know if you can obtain large quantities of antique bottles. Price is irrelevent.
Thank you for your comments Theo. My own collection of antique Coke and Pepsi glass botttles pales into insignificance against this hoard. I would like to own such a collection but I am afraid my family would have to move out, in order for me to store such a vast bottle collection. Quite impressive, indeed! There are many online sites where you can buy bottles but for quantity you may require you may need to visit specific bottle auctions which are held from time to time. Closing down sales, at pharmaceutical or old garages plants, might be helpful too.
I have a glass coke bottle and a juice bottle that I found recently. They are old but I don’t believe that they are antique bottles of any great $ value. They are beautiful however and I had them cleaned professionally and they sit proudly on the mantle shelf. Your article has been very helpful and informative to me.
Thank you for your kind comments. I am delighted that you have discovered this small treasure throve of antique glass bottles and it matters not if they may have little monetary value. Do not underestimate the value of small old glass bottles because sometimes they are indeed very valuable. Your mantle is much adorned now by the addition of these two glass beauties regardless of their value.
hi great hub have just moved in to a new house it is quite an old buildin and i discovered some old bottles , must get them checked might be worth something.
Thank you, Jayne, for your comments. It is so exciting to find new bottles. New old bottles, that is. Do go to visit a reputable dealer and have them valued. Let’s hope that you have unearthed one or two antique drink bottles in the collection. Old Pepsi bottles or Coca-cola bottles can be worth money.
Hi Penny Circle, it looks like you and I like the same kind of stuff, I love antique bottles. But I do not care about the value all that much, I just enjoy glass bottles in great shapes and colors.
Thank you for your comments on these bottles whose beauty may just be in the eye of the beholder. Some of them have little value but, even worthless, old bottles can be beautiful to admire and all it takes is one antique glass bottle to make your overall bottle collection valuable. If not, then the lovely color and shapes more than compensate..
How much is a "Seedsman & Son Maldon" bottle worth? They are from the 1800s and are apparently very rare and there seems to be no mention of them anywhere.
Thank you for your comments and enquiry. I cannot find any information on them either but it’s likely that a 200 year old bottle will be of interest to collectors of antique bottles of that period. If you believe that they may have originated in Australia it might be best to go to a reputable dealer locally to have the bottle (or bottles) valued properly, as online evaluations are often misleading, due to the tactile nature of the glass examination required.
Good informative antique site. You have assisted me in identifing several of my bottle antique collection, much appreciated, will keep page tuned in.
Thank you for your comments. Some of the small old bottles are more difficult to value but work is ongoing on these.
Some 3 months ago "Rory" asked a question about a "Seedsman & Sons" of Maldon Victoria bottle and its worth. While I cannot give you any valuation I can add that William Seedsman was my great grandfather and owened and operated Seesman Cordials in Maldon, Victoria, Australia from about 1880 to 1920. I can provide a little more information on the Seedsman family if interested.
I am a friend of the Walker family from Erie PA that once owned the Walker Grape Juice Company. I have been collecting bottles, ads, spoons and other items related to the company. I noticed five and six months ago a John and a Julia made comments about the company and bottles. I would love to contact John and see if he would be interested in selling any of the bottles with the Walker Grape Juice Co. info on them? The family was a noted one that also started the Erie Lithograph Co. and William Homer Walker was responsible for helping start the business school at Duquene University in Pittsburg. He also had the first charter in Florida for First Federal Savings and Loanin 1930's. This family was in the Erie PA area early in 1800's or earlier. Thanks for help with contacting John d.
Alan Seedsman
Hi Alan, thank you for your comments and valued addition to the ever growing popularity of antique bottle collecting. The history of the Seedsman company is fascinating and for you to have such a direct link to the owner, your great grandfather, is amazing. I am certainly interested in information on the Seedsman family, which you post directly here in the comments. You can email me too, especially if you have photographs and I may be able to produce a stand alone article (hub) on Seedsman & Sons antique bottles and the history of your family and that particular era.
Lynda Crabill
Hi Lynda, thank you for your comments and valuable information on the Walker Grape Juice Company antique bottles. I am interested in the information you provided on the Walker Company, which was such a coincidence considering the previous comment on another great company. As I mentioned to Alan on the Seedsman history I would also be interested in producing a stand alone article (hub) on the Walker Grape Juice Co. if you are willing to provide information and/or photos by email. Alternatively, you may use this comment space for updating readers, as the historic information on the great companies of the past should be recorded for posterity.
I found a tiny green bottle while digging up my garden and was wondering if anybody could enlighten me as to what it is. It's small, just under 2" in length. I looked for seams but didn't see any and the rim isn't even so perhaps it was made without a mold? I was thinking perhaps an ink bottle? It's probably not worth anything because it looks like it melted...it's collapsed into itself after the neck (the body of the bottle) but it's still whole except for a little tiny hole at the bottle but I sure would love to date it and know what it was used for.
Hi Aidee. Thank you for your comments. You describe a very strange bottle, what with the hole in it and it's crinkled glass (I am assuming it is glass?). Tiny bottles like these were used in the pharmacy, drug or pharmaceutical area as glass medicine bottles but obviously without the hole. I can't imagine that it melted after manufacture. I am perplexed by this bottle but am afraid I can't offer much help regarding its provenance. Perhaps you could photograph it and write a hub on its discovery?
Alternatively you could send an image to the world famous Rakow Research Library and ask for their expert opinion.
Rakow Research Library
5 Museum Way, Corning, NY 14830
(607) 974-8649
rakow@cmog.org
Thank you for replying. I will definitely take some pictures and send them off to Rakow for review. I'm curious as to the history of this little bottle. Thank you for the information.
You are welcome, Aidee. You might let me know if you discover any new information on the antique bottle. Thank you for returning to make a reply.
A very good practical guide to this good hobby. Well written Penny. Much appreciated.
Hi Paula. Thank you very much for your comments on these old bottles. It is a great hobby as you say, but are old bottles worth money? I don't think about the monetary value, as the enjoyment is in the search, discovery and old bottle identification process, which is what I love the most about antique bottle collecting.
Very informative hub article on antique bottles. Much appreciated.
Thank you, I needed antique stuff for my school project.
Hi Marie-Anne and Brian, thank you both for visiting and commenting. I am glad that the article was of benefit to you. Collecting old antique glass bottles is a great hobby to get interested in and finding the antique glass bottles identification marking is a project in itself.
Superb information on this subject. Many illuminating facts on the difficult to find antique bottles.
The antique glass bottle identification marks vary considerably but can be confusing too. I have one Walkers grape juice bottle in good condition that is worthless and another that has slight flaws but is worth over $50. There is no definitive old bottle price guide anywhere although your article and the Seedsman bottle one has been of enormous benefit. Oftentimes an old glass bottles value is just in the eye of the beholder but money aside what exquisite beauties they are. Great hub!
Great stuff, I had difficulty getting information i need on the subject but your hub in very informative and covers a broad range of glass antique bottles and vases.
I always associate old bottles with layers of dust and dirt. They would not feel like old antiques otherwise. Clean bottles just cannot be antiquish even if that sounds silly. Forgive me Penny for my comments as I am no expert in antiques but I did enjoy reading the hub and all the fantastic comments.
love antique bottles........
Thank you floraphil, Sandra, Joe, Ian and Megan for visiting and commenting on all things glassy. Collecting antique glass in bottles or any other formation is a hobby well worth pursuing. The interested can be sparked at an early age and never leaves us as indicated by your insightful comments which are much appreciated by the author.
old beer bottle 21 months ago
I have several bottles that I have dug up from the Panama Canal Zone... not really sure their worth, there are a few, I can't type their entire descriptions, as I would get tired typing, suggest you read more about my digs at http://old-beer-bottles.com/index.php?ct=Bottles