old black bottle found in melbourne

kendolbottles1black · Feb 6, 2004

hi brian i have a small black glass ricketts squat 3 piece mold it is embossed on the base but does not have patent on the shoulder .maybe some companys ordered them that way so as not to interfere with labels ect.[

]anyway its just a guess by for now ken

Harry Pristis · Feb 7, 2004

Hello, Brian . . .

My point was that we cannot know why the "PATENT" was obliterated from the mold. The lettering could have been worn out and removed because the bottles didn't look good any longer. The lettering could have been removed due to machinist error, such as cutting a backwards "E", for example. Or, it is possible that the buyer of these bottles just didn't want any embossment on the shoulder.

A plate mold which would use "slug plates" is a development of the later half of the 1800s, according to Munsey. This is a bit later than your bottle, I think.

Perhaps there is someone here who is familiar with the repair of metal molds. I am guessing that the grooves cut to make the letters were filled in with rod stock -- peened, welded, and ground smooth. I think such a repair could never be perfect, especially at high temperatures, because of the differences between the welding stock and the mold, and because of unavoidable flaws in the patch.

So that everyone here knows what we are talking about, here is a bottle from a patched mold. I don't know the history of this patent medicine, but it seems clear that DR. W. H. BULL stopped advertizing himself as a "DR." as this was obscured by a patch in the mold for this bottle. I guess this falls into the category of "error." Can you see the trace?

-----------Harry Pristis

Harry Pristis · Feb 7, 2004

Hello, Ken . . .

If you are talking about the bottle that started this thread, it may not have "PATENT" on the shoulder because there was no patent when the bottle was produced. Remember, the Ricketts patent was issued in 1821.

---------Harry Pristis

kendolbottles1black · Feb 7, 2004

no harry i have another smaller version embossed on the bottom thanks again ken[

]

BRIAN S. · Feb 7, 2004

Harry ,
I thought it was a little unusual on my bottle. Thanks for the info on it !
Brian

BRIAN S. · Feb 7, 2004

Harry ,
Your Bull's looks more like the result of a dirty mold than as the Dr. being peened from the mold . Brian

old black bottle found in melbourne

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