The Fun of "How'd It Get There?"

[DeepSeaDan]

So there I was, cruising down-river, head on a swivel, hunting for treasures, when I noticed a cylindrical object to my left, resting amongst a small pile of rock, mostly camouflaged in zebra mussels. Aha, I said to myself - what have we here? A vigorous rub-down revealed it to be a large Master Ink. So there I paused, as in countless finds before, pondering how such an object ended up being, in this case, in the middle of a large river, in the middle of nowhere.

My mind's eye pictured an old passenger steamer, doggedly chugging along in the late October sun. Some passengers appear engaged in quiet conversation, their eyes studying the passing riverbank; still others are reading the newspaper, sipping sodas from gravitators or, somewhat later - hutchinson's. Then there's that studious-looking fellow, possibly a journalist, standing at the aft rail, looking somewhat bleary-eyed ( having been up most of the previous night writing up his report ). He reaches into his time-worn leather satchel to retrieve the empty Master Ink bottle he drained last evening, putting quill-pen to paper. He hangs the bottle over the edge of the rail and casually releases it into the churning waters below, hoping upon hope his editor will replace the vital liquid and not dock his pay...

So tell me - am I the only one who plays the " How'd it get here?" mind game, or do others enjoy this aspect of the hobby?

 

[Sitcoms]

Beautiful find! There are always some that make me scratch my head, trying to imagine how they ended up where they rest. If only the bottles could tell their stories!

 

[DeepSeaDan]

Thanks, Sitcoms! And yes indeed, the tales they'd tell would be mighty interesting!

 

[bottlecrazy]

It's the tie to some real person in the distant past that underlies all of my amateur archeological interests, including bottle digging and collecting!

 

[hemihampton]

I said to myself how'd it get there when I dug a Iron Pontiled Squat soda bottom in what seemed to be a 1890's+ maybe 1900+ area? Leon.

 

[sandchip]

Great color glaze. Very cool find!

 

[UnderMiner]

Love your imagination @DeepSeaDan, I imagine similar scenarios when I'm exploring too. That's eseentially the reason I hunt, to travel back in time since I imagine the artifacts we find connect us to the people who last used them.

When I was kayaking down a river one warm August evening I happened upon some old wooden pilings extending out from the shore. There had likely been a fishing dock there at some point I thought. So I docked the kayak and searched the area under the pilings. There were many artifacts, all dating back to the 1890's or later, including an old P&J Arnold master ink with the rubber cork still in it. There was also an old blob-top beer bottle and a fiddle patern tea spoon.

The view from this place was amazing. I imagined someone drinking that beer sitting on that dock when it still stood. They set the bottle down on the edge and it fell into the water. I imagined at a similar time someone stirring their tea sitting on the edge, the spoon slipping from their hand and falling into the water where it would stay beside the beer bottle for the next 130 years.

The master ink I couldn't figure why would be there at first, but then I realized - artists would use alot of ink back then, maybe there was an artist drawing the scenery around the river and needed alot of ink, more than a typical inkwell could provide. Just as the other two people had done he set the bottle down by the edge as he made his pen and ink drawing, and it slipped into the water. Too heavy to float back to the surface it was lost.

 

[DeepSeaDan]

Love your imagination @DeepSeaDan, I imagine similar scenarios when I'm exploring too. That's eseentially the reason I hunt, to travel back in time since I imagine the artifacts we find connect us to the people who last used them.

When I was kayaking down a river one warm August evening I happened upon some old wooden pilings extending out from the shore. There had likely been a fishing dock there at some point I thought. So I docked the kayak and searched the area under the pilings. There were many artifacts, all dating back to the 1890's or later, including an old P&J Arnold master ink with the rubber cork still in it. There was also an old blob-top beer bottle and a fiddle patern tea spoon.

The view from this place was amazing. I imagined someone drinking that beer sitting on that dock when it still stood. They set the bottle down on the edge and it fell into the water. I imagined at a similar time someone stirring their tea sitting on the edge, the spoon slipping from their hand and falling into the water where it would stay beside the beer bottle for the next 130 years.

The master ink I couldn't figure why would be there at first, but then I realized - artists would use alot of ink back then, maybe there was an artist drawing the scenery around the river and needed alot of ink, more than a typical inkwell could provide. Just as the other two people had done he set the bottle down by the edge as he made his pen and ink drawing, and it slipped into the water. Too heavy to float back to the surface it was lost.

Awesomeness! Love those old pilings! As I read your words, I could truly imagine the scene - all you left out was the unfortunate souls' mild cursing at their clumsiness - who can't relate to that! These days, there'd be a huge sign at the edge of the dock, warning folks to BE CAUTIOUS OF DROPPING ITEMS! and a number to call for emotional stress therapy if you did it anyway!

I occasionally find lost outboard motors, boats and the like - my curse imaginings are somewhat amplified in those instances!

Thanks for the story!

 

[DeepSeaDan]

I said to myself how'd it get there when I dug a Iron Pontiled Squat soda bottom in what seemed to be a 1890's+ maybe 1900+ area? Leon.

I suspect you said that "how'd it get there?" with a huge smile on your face!

 

[DeepSeaDan]

It's the tie to some real person in the distant past that underlies all of my amateur archeological interests, including bottle digging and collecting!

So true, Bottlecrazy!