Pair of case bottles

1790-1820 Measurements 6-1/4 in x 2-3/4 in x 2-3/4 in Materials Colorless nonlead glass Credit Line

Historic Odessa Foundation, gift of William Anderson Henry in memory of Bessie M. Henry

Accession Number 1984.99 Condition Notes

One bottle (1984.99.2) is missing a stopper.  Gilded decoration on the shoulders of each bottle and on the one globular stopper exhibits some wear.

Comments

The two small bottles were blown into square metal molds to impart their shape, which allowed them to be fitted into a wood bottle case along with several other similar bottles. The bottle shoulders are gilded with delicate guilloches and stylized floral wreathes and related motifs.  This decoration was visible when the bottles were in their case; they were not displayed on tables or other flat surfaces except when in use.  Evidence suggests cased bottles were primarily used in travel.  See Arlene Palmer, Glass in Early America: Selections from the Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum (1993), p. 358.