To Display Or Not To Display

[RED Matthews]

Well Eric and Bill, I am sorry to sense your disappointment regarding your collections. I guess I haven't ever worked very hard to do shows, but I have seen pictures of different Bisby bottles. I know I have three or four of them in NY, but they just haven't had ehough forming difference to create the bottle mystery markings i look for. It is strange characteristic of interest goals in people, but it is a great hobby.
RED Matthews

 

[cowseatmaize]

but they just haven't had ehough forming difference to create the bottle mystery markings i look for

True enough Red but at the Lowell show there was a great display of Sawyers Crystal Bluing bottles. I never thought they would interest people but they sure did. Talk about a most commonly thrown out bottle but there were sizes and colors I never new existed and that made for a very nice display. I even voted for it but I think the milks won the prize.
Milks are great, don't get me wrong but talk about limited form change. They basically have different embossment and that's all, maybe a few colors.
Please! No hate mail from the milk collectors. []

 

[cowseatmaize]

Here's the link I was looking for. https://www.antique-bottles.net/forum/m-574857/mpage-1/key-/tm.htm

 

[mctaggart67]

Bill: I hear you on the snobbishness of some in the hobby. Ignore them and do as you're doing, enjoying your bottles. I primarily collect Canadian prescription drugstore bottles. Up here in Canada, these bottles find a mixed audience. Some love them, some are okay with them, and some just ignore or undervalue them. All told, I'd say this category places well behind sodas, beers, milks, ginger beers, primitives, stoneware, pontilled and early proprietary medicines, poisons, and painted label pops. However, I find that drugstore bottles have great stories to tell. You just have to do the research, which takes time, but pays back more than your effort.

How does this connect with show displays? Well, find the cool stories associated with your bottles and emphasize them in your proposed displays. People love stories and collectors appreciate the bottle-specific ones. This works and, at the risk of coming off as a braggart, I'd like to tell you about a display I put together around twenty years ago for a show in Ottawa, Canada's capital. After undertaking comprehensive research of the historical pharmacy trade in my hometown of Sarnia, Ontario, I was struck by the how all the drugstores in the place before chains took over starting in the 1920s/30s were all related to one particular pharmacy, either through blood, apprenticeship training or stores changing hands. For my display, entitled "The Genealogy of Geary's Drugstore," I included the "family tree," portraits of the pharmacists, period photos of their stores, and, of course, tons of bottles. I went for broke and was rewarded with the people's choice award and with the adjudication panel's first place ribbon. What blew me away was that my display was of bottles from a city 450 miles away from Ottawa and that other displays -- all very well done -- included more popular categories such as black glass bottles, rare ginger beers, poisons, and "war slogan" dairy bottles. Actually, I didn't win anything. The history did!!!

Moral of the story: Get busy researching and promoting the great stories you'll find!!!

 

[JOETHECROW]

Had to throw my two cents in here....Bill,...Bixby bottles and all the go with items are super cool. Humble to some? Perhaps, but I've always had a soft spot for them as I used to dig them in many (now) rare colors at a dump now buried by a wood processing plant constructed there. It was one of my earliest dumps, 1860's to 1890's, and It was long before the internet was thought of. Back in the 70's digging used to be a solitary activity for me, and I used to marvel at all of the new discoverys I would make...If it looked cool, It went home with me. I still feel that way when I dig something I've never seen, but the opportunitys are rarer. As far as the snobbery angle, It's unfortunate, and detracts from this fine and interesting hobby. Best of luck with your farm and your display ambitions. I think a Bixby display would be awesome. Take care. Joe

 

[rockbot]

Ditto Joe!
I agree 100%.

ORIGINAL: JOETHECROW

Had to throw my two cents in here....Bill,...Bixby bottles and all the go with items are super cool. Humble to some? Perhaps, but I've always had a soft spot for them as I used to dig them in many (now) rare colors at a dump now buried by a wood processing plant constructed there. It was one of my earliest dumps, 1860's to 1890's, and It was long before the internet was thought of. Back in the 70's digging used to be a solitary activity for me, and I used to marvel at all of the new discoverys I would make...If it looked cool, It went home with me. I still feel that way when I dig something I've never seen, but the opportunitys are rarer. As far as the snobbery angle, It's unfortunate, and detracts from this fine and interesting hobby. Best of luck with your farm and your display ambitions. I think a Bixby display would be awesome. Take care. Joe