"J.A. & W. BIRD &
CO. / NO. 53 / CHATHAM ST. / BOSTON," clear flint glass
with a grey cast, two-piece mold cylinder, tubular pontil scar,
9 ¼"H, applied square collar, about mint (pinhead-sized
lip flake and some minor exterior wear). American, probably blown
at a South Boston Glass Works, C. 1840, very rare.
Until laying eyes on this beautiful piece our only previous exposure
to a bottle with this embossing had been a black and white photo
in the Greer catalog. As with many of the bottles in that massive
collection the piece went largely unnoticed at the time and if
it had even half the character of this example, that's a travesty.
Impressively sized and "hammered" with whittle, this
exciting bottle is blown from a high grade of flinty metal that
exhibits a distinct grey cast. The quality of the glass stands
in stark contrast to the typical bottle glass of the era and
is indicative of manufacture at one of the tableware houses located
in South Boston at the time. This is to my eye a GREAT bottle
and certainly something that should not be overlooked today.
SOLD! |
