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I get probably a half-dozen emails, and the same number of phone calls and letters, a day asking me about a bottle, or group of bottles, someone has just come across. I just answered an email a minute ago from a woman who had a Corn for the World flask in amber. I had to tell her it was a reproduction and, although I felt bad about ruining her grandiose ideas of instant wealth, I can't take a bad bottle and make it good.

We have a section on our webpage that talks about what to look for in the different types of bottle out there. Bottles are a tough thing to collect because there are so many. Therefore, it's a good question to ask; what makes one amber whiskey bottle so much better than another? The answer lies in a number of different areas, not the least of which is the age of the bottle.

When people ask me what to look for in a bottle, I tell them to look for something with color, something usually bigger than your fist and something that has writing on it. These are very loose guidelines that often lead me deeper into trouble with the novices that are beginning to assemble a collection. When we get a call, the worst description I can hear is, "we have thousands of rare, valuable bottles". People don't understand that the words "thousands" and "rare" don't go together. Another ones I love are the "3 or 4 Clorox bottles", or the "clear medicine bottle with the screw cap" that people write me about each week... "...how much are they worth?" I answer every email, letter and phone call, but some are harder to respond to than others.

The hardest thing for us to do at American Bottle Auctions is to tell someone that their treasure is actually not a treasure, but rather "just a neat bottle that you should put in your window". I tell many people that not every bottle needs to be valuable to be beautiful. Myself, I have my whole office window lined with unembossed whiskey bottles, ladies legs and different colored squares. I get as many comments on those as I do my other, more valuable, bottles.

People think that rare means valuable. Sometimes it does. A rare whiskey is certainly worth more than a common one, assuming they are the same age, etc... but rare doesn't always translate to value. A common email we get is, "I've researched it everywhere and can't find this bottle. It must be rare and valuable". Often rare translates into "no one really cares". I know that's a little harsh, but when someone sends you an email of a bottle in aqua with, say an anchor on it, and it's old, but not that old, and certainly rare, that's all fine and dandy, but it doesn't mean anyone wants it. Clear western flasks are a good example. For virtually every city or town at the turn of the century there were dozens of bars. Maybe a good third of those bars, or saloons, had flasks made with their name on them. Just browsing through John Thomas' Picnics Coffins Shoo-Flies, you can see over 400 of the little devils. Many are rare, and that's the problem. If 100 of them are rare, you begin to have a type of bottle with a lot of rare specimens. That's fine, but how many people are going to collect 100 different rare, clear flasks, let alone the other 300? Don't get me wrong, the good ones are still strong in the marketplace, but they're not exactly on the same level as historical flasks, which come in different colors and shapes. Like the clear flasks, the same is true of medicine bottles. Every city had their own, and there are literally thousands out there, many of which are rare.

I have a standard checklist to help determine the basic value, or importance, of a bottle. It's also a good idea to have Kovel's bottle book or Michael Polak's Bottle Identification Guide. Both are available on Amazon and we have them listed in the reference section of our website. Also, you can use the search engine on our webpage and simply type in the name on the bottle to see if we've auctioned any in the last number of auctions.

1. Color is king. Believe it or not, the most valuable bottles are green. Having said that, blue is always desirable, but mostly in special circumstances, like a blue historical flask or bitters. Most bottles are aqua, that is the natural color of glass, or rather the color you get when you put together the basic ingredients to make glass. The second most prevalent color is amber. An amber Indian Queen, for instance, may be worth $600. A green example of the same bottle might be worth $10,000. Puce, or a grayish purple, is a superb and rare color. In the end, color is king.

2. Age is a major factor. Most valuable bottles were only made from around 1850 to 1900. In the west, that date goes from around 1860 to 1900... then after 1885 or so, the value drops off sharply. Why those dates? During those years, glass companies in the United States became more familiar with glass making and they began to emboss company names on bottles. This alone increases their value. As glassmaking further developed, elaborate shapes and decorations adorned bottles. Although some of these are common, like the Tippecanoe bottles, occasionally some poor sod was talked into having an elaborate and expensive bottle made, only to see sales dwindle... hence the end of that bottle's production. That's when the planets start to align and you really have something... a highly decorative, and very rare bottle. Throw in a rare color and maybe an embossed eagle and you are getting near bottle heaven. Bottles made before 1850 aren't without value, by any means. Some are very valuable, especially early flasks like the Jared Spencer or glass blown at Wistarburgh (America's first glass house). Generally though, you'll find a lot of unembossed bottles that, although they are very beautiful, don't command a lot of money. I'm speaking mostly of bottles made in America. There are exceptions but they are rare. Also, don't forget about the elaborate Sandwich pieces or early Stiegel glass that command big bucks... I'm speaking mostly of embossed bottles or pattern molded pieces.

3. Rarity is the deciding factor with any area of collecting. A piece of paper signed by the four Beatles sells in the $10,000+ range now. How can that be? Well, they were rarely outside together, one died early, and they didn't sign a lot of stuff because they were highly protected by their manager and handlers. They were almost too famous. The same holds true with bottles. Anyone can buy an aqua historical flask, but try finding a GV-12 in aqua and you really have something. By the way, pretty much all of the historical or commemorative flasks are listed in a book titled American Bottles & Flasks and Their Ancestry written by Helen McKearin and Kenneth M. Wilson. It is considered the guide for collecting early Eastern and Midwestern flasks and bottles. The McKearins developed an index whereby different embossing patterns were put in different groups ranging from GI to GXV or 1 to 15. Within these 15 groups are different bottles and sub-groups. For collectors of early flasks, this index is invaluable. For example, some collectors may decide to collect every flask on which George Washington is pictured (he's on more flasks than anyone). I recommend finding a copy of American Bottles & Flasks. Because of the McKearin's exhaustive research and dedication to the hobby, this book is still regarded as the Holy Grail today. You'll find it on Ebay occasionally.

4. Intangibles. When you stand two of the same bottles next to each other, why is one worth so much more? We've already mentioned color, but there are other things that determine the value of a bottle. Another important factor is crudity. The crudity of a bottle makes it more desirable, as it shows the uniqueness of a handmade bottle. Maybe it has a crooked top or the surface of the glass is uneven and full of bubbles. Sometimes, the mold maker screwed up and there'll be a backward "F" or "J". Whittle is represented by the choppy marks on a bottle. Whittle is caused by the bottle being blown in a cold mold or a mold which was used at the beginning of the day. As the mold heated up, the glass became more stable and produced bottles that are less desirable for collectors today. Some bottles rarely have whittle because the glass blower was probably told to only blow them later in the day (the California Clubhouse western whiskey is usually found very neatly blown). Other bottles almost always have whittle marks because they are older and glass making was still in it's early development.

For a detailed explanation of the different types of bottles, go to the "Collecting" page on our website. This will go through the different types of bottles there are, and also explain what their uses were. Briefly, they include whiskey, bitters, medicines, soda or mineral waters, inks, poisons, beer as well as other utilitarian bottles and things like milks.

Why are some bottles more valuable than others? Well, we've discussed a number of reasons, but remember that there are thousands of different bottles out there. Almost every one made before 1890 is, at least, a little different. If you get stuck and need some help, feel free to email us a picture or give us a call. One caveat, no Clorox bottles, please.

By Jeff Wichmann

01/06/06

I have 2 bottles that were made with a three piece mold...but they are clear no color....one is like a prototype it looks like it was the first one to be made with that mold...the way I know is that has no definitions on it at all and the top is crooked and has a lot of bubbles in it......and the other one that I have is the same bottle with the same crooked top but more definition on it and the top is taller...they are wine bottles made in Italy....and the first one has no markings on it at all.....but the other one has all the markings on it.......it is the three boys holding up the world......I have showed them to a lot of antique dealers and they have never seen them before..... I also took them to a antique collector society....and they have never seen them either especially the one with no markings......any information would be appreciated.........I think that they were made between 1806 1830........ so I have been told.

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