I have really been impressed with the beautiful 1850s and 60s squares which have been posted on this site as of late. It appears that there is a renewed interest in these bottles, and they sure do provide alot of color and crudity along with great history of the old west.
After the recent posting describing the various ingredients contained in these various types of "beverages", I thought I could add some additional detail for at least one early square.
The advertising for Charles' London Cordial Gin stated it was "A most pleasant Stimulant, Unequaled and Agreeable Beverage Made from the Juniper Berry" Dr. Valentine Recommends it as well as many other Physicians" Sounds pretty tasty to me!
Here is an early example with a sand chip pontil, which looks like an open pontil. This example is 9 5/8" tall and loaded with frothy champagne bubbles. This mold looks like the Catawba Wine Bitters mold to me, but i know many of you know much more than I when it comes to these beautiful squares.
Dale,
ReplyDeleteIn my early years of research I often ran across advertisements for Charles London Cordial Gin. Mostly from 1856 thru the 1860 time period. What is most unusual about this example is the mould configuration that was used, it is indeed a duplicate of the Catawba Wine Bitters bottle and a close resemblence to the Jockey Club Gin bottle. The more common mould for this product is the non sloped shoulder square that represents several different known brands of gin products. I have only seen one other example like this and that bottle is in Ken Edward's collection, a beauty I might add.
Hi, I have a bottle that was located in the wall of my grandmothers 1800's home. It is a London Charles Cordial gin amber. With partially readable label. What if anything is it worth. Its def. pretty. Even with the skeletal mouse in the bottom..lol
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