G W Merchant questions

[stonebottle]

Hello all,

The bottle on the right is a Lockport Blue bottle dug by my brother in Central NY state. It was found under the rocks of a very old foundation. It is embossed "From the Laboratory/of G W Merchant Chemist/Lockport N.Y." The first picture shows this bottle with a different color Merchant he found about 10 miles away near another foundation. Does this look like some kind of an iron pontil or other type pontil? We have had trouble figuring it out because of the weird depression in the base. There is no iron residue to be seen on the base. The brown color on the base in the one photo is just a reflection. So.. FIRST we are talking about the bottle on the right in the photo, SO LET'S CALL THE ONE ON THE RIGHT BOTTLE NUMBER 1 and the ONE ON THE LEFT BOTTLE NUMBER 2. Note the period/dot after the word "Chemist" on bottle number 1.

 

[stonebottle]

Here is a picture of the base ON BOTTLE NUMBER 1.

 

[stonebottle]

Another picture of the base ON BOTTLE NUMBER 1. The brown is just a reflection in this picture.

 

[stonebottle]

Now this is a picture of what appears to be a repair to the mold ON BOTTLE NUMBER 1 Has anyone ever seen a G W Merchant bottle with this repair?? The other bottle, which was an emerald green sort of color, does not have the repair. It would be great to know if this is a pontiled bottle and what everyone thinks of the mold repair. I thought it was pretty amazing he found two different colors of Merchant bottles in the same town, but ten miles apart. It would be great to know the value of these bottles, but I know he will never sell them. These were very old homesteads on deserted back roads. Thanks for your help. stonebottle

 

[woody]

I'd say the value is between $150-200 a piece.
I don't think they are pontiled, though.
I have seen pontiled versions of that bottle and it didn't look like that base.

 

[div2roty]

I'm new to bottles, but that looks like a key mold base to me, which dates right after the pontil mark. Here is a good page on bases http://www.sha.org/bottle/bases.htm#Snap%20Case%20&%20Sabot. I hope that helps.

 

[GuntherHess]

Very nice bottle. I have seen that mold a few times before.
It is a diagnal hinge mold with a deep pushed up iron pontil. Yours doesnt seem to have any residue left in the mark. The mold repair is seen on those.
Here is an old not so great photo from ebay of one of those but you can see the repair if you look close.

 

[KentOhio]

I got a new digital camera for Christmas. Let's see if this works:

 

[KentOhio]

Here's the base on mine, which must be a third mold variation.

 

[RED Matthews]

To Stonebottle and Gutherhess: First of all the seam is not located like a true key mold, because the diagonal is now lined up with the diagonal between the edge lines. It was no doubt a bottom hinged mold but the location selection was to let the glass out of the mold when it was opened.
The pontil is obviously from a specially made elongated oval punty rod. With out residue identity, it was more than likely held with crushed glass on the heated punty rod. It looks deep but it would take some high magnification to detect the holding media.
Gunther: Is the repair on the bottle you showed a long iron insert block on the right had side of the panel? The must have had a letter cutting error on both bottle molds to require this type of mold cavity insert. The squared opening in the mold being difficult to create.
This was an interesting post - thank you both.
RED Matthews