Got the shock of my life today digging this.

[TexasRancher]

Iron pontil is on my bucket list !
Found a few (3), complete and several broken, glass pontil bottles. The iron pontil eludes me.

I found about 20 of them when i was a boy in Upstate N.Y., all different cool colors too...every one had the neck/top broke off. It's just life...how it rolls.
I have a theory that men riding on their wagons....use to strong arm iron pontils with aim....to try shatter it and something else. Perfect Long Neck Throwing bottle....fun on the wagon road.

 

[Newtothiss]

I'm sure some people will probably call me a cynic if I suggest that was no coincidence; that someone (perhaps named named Leon?) called in an anonymous tip in order to get the government to do some exploratory digging with backhoes and save himself a bunch of back-breaking labor. Thus, I will not suggest such was the case.

Now I am not the law breaking type, but dang! What an idea...

 

[lisacachecreek8!]

Iron pontil is on my bucket list !
Found a few (3), complete and several broken, glass pontil bottles. The iron pontil eludes me.H

 

[lisacachecreek8!]

How do you tell if its a iron pontil?

I found about 20 of them when i was a boy in Upstate N.Y., all different cool colors too...every one had the neck/top broke off. It's just life...how it rolls.
I have a theory that men riding on their wagons....use to strong arm iron pontils with aim....to try shatter it and something else. Perfect Long Neck Throwing bottle....fun on the wagon road.

 

[CanadianBottles]

How do you tell if its a iron pontil?

They've got a metallic residue on the base, almost always in a circle.

 

[lisacachecreek8!]

They've got a metallic residue on the base, almost always in a circle.

thanks, good to know

 

[historic-antiques]

I went out for my 1/2 lunch break today & drove around looking for more tore down Houses in the big city of Detroit since I work in Detroit. If you followed my many other stories over the Years I'm always finding Bottles behind Demolished torn down Houses or at Construction sites. Today no different, only today got a surprise. The area is mostly Houses around he 1900-1920 time frame, maybe some 1890's at most/oldest. I see some dirt piles & pallets of cinder Blocks like they are getting ready to build something. In this Field, I see a big square shaped Trench with piles of dirt along edge of Trench. This trench is I assume going to be the Foundation of this Building, seen them do this many times before, they dig a trench like 2 feet wide & 2-3 feet deep & then fill this trench full of Concrete & steel rebar rods & cinder blocks, ect., ect. I walk along the dirt pile looking for Bottles or shards that they dug out of Trench. Aint finding much, cleaner then usual. I get to back corners & figure this is where the good stuff will be. First back corner not much, couple of shards of Broken Plates or cups. Move across back & not much BUT then I get to the other back corner & I see the bottom of a Bottle shard sticking up in the dirt. I figure probably the bottom of like a 1910 Crown top., which is typical & common in this area. I pull it out of dirt & look at it, it looks like it's got a kick up like you seen on the bottom of Wine or Champagne Bottles. I start wiping the dirt off bottom & I say NO WAY, That aint a kick up, That's a Iron Pontil. No big deal if you dig in the east where they are more common but not common at all in Detroit area. What was more surpring is It was totally unexpected in a newer 1900+ area. I'm like how did something this old from 1850's get here?????? I wanted to look in Trench to see where it came from. But trench was totally covered under tarps & bricks holding tarps down. Plus I had no shovel. I'm going to have to come back tomorrow & take a extra long Lunch break, see if I can shovel through that dirt pile & take a peek under tarp. Wish me luck. LEON.

View attachment 242964View attachment 242965

Good luck Leon, find a whole iron-pontiled bottle tomorrow!!

I guess somebody hung on to that bottle for 50-60 years or so, then finally tossed it around 1900+. Or maybe somebody in a stagecoach or pioneer wagon tossed it 170 years ago. I'm throwing lots of garbage out right now, that's 50+ years old, getting ready to move. But, being very careful what I toss!!!

 

[UncleBruce]

How do you tell if its a iron pontil?

This is an iron pontil. These can be less visible, but there will some kind of scarring on the base. The residue is the clue. Generally the scar for this type of pontil is wider (2"-3") than other types.