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Collectable and antique bottles have been sought after for centuries. The art of glass blowing was invented by the Phoenicians in approximately 50 B.C. and has fascinated people all around the world ever since. The way a glassblower uses the blowpipe to make his creations is amazing, as each piece can be entirely different from the last one. By adding colored dye to the glass, the blower can create a wide variety of vases, jars, and assorted containers.
During the Middle Ages, the art of glass blowing was used to create some of the most magnificent drinking vessels in the world. Today, glass blowing is also used to create miniature glass statuettes.
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Antique glass bottles were obtained by collectors from digging around in old buildings and garbage dumps. Over the years these bottles have become very valuable. The 1800's was a historical time for bottles, as glassblowers began to put their mark on the bottles they made. It wasn't very much longer until glassblowers began putting more information on all the bottles they made, such as the date or some important information which needed to be etched into the bottles so that people would know where the bottle came from and what its contents were.
The first bottles used cork stoppers to help age wine, and this type of lid is still used in some wines today. There is also a very good reason why bottles have different designs in their creation. Some bottles were made with straight sides and were good for catching sediment, and it made them easy to stock. A Burgandy bottle has its sides tapering down 2/3rds the height to a shorter cylindrical section, and it does not have a shoulder. Then in 1872 the Codd-neck bottle was invented, and soon became the most popular bottle in the world, as it had to be filled upside down and a rubber washer in the neck was sealed using pressurized gas to seal the washer in place.
Collectables & bottles from these early years are very valuable, and anyone that owns some of them can consider themselves very lucky. If you have a fascination for old or antique bottles the best advice is to do research on the internet or at a local antique store in your area.
A good way to start your own antique bottle collection is to visit an old dump site where your grandparents may have dumped their garbage when they were growing up. Some of the most valuable bottles could be found there, especially some old Avon bottles that are no longer produced today. Many years ago before there were plastic bottles and Clorox, companies would put bluing in small glass containers which were oddly shaped. These are worth some money these days. There are a lot of old nice looking bottles which were at one time perfume bottles or old beer bottles which are not produced anymore, that would make a nice addition to a collectables & bottle collection.
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