The McKearin numbered GIV-42 Calabash Flask

[Steve/sewell]

Just checkin in

 

[photolith]

I know this is a super old post, but did the Clevengers ever reproduce other versions of the Union Clasp? It seems that they only reprod the ones with the compass. The one I have has an iron pontil. To my knowledge the Clevengers didn’t do iron pontils.

Was at an antique store today and saw a Jenny Lind purple bottle. But I know about the Clevengers and it was one of their repros. The bottle otherwise looked completely legit, even had good wear. I took it up to the owner and showed him the difference between a repro Jenny Lind and the legit ones. It had 200 on it. Hope he relables the bottle and changes the price. But I doubt it. The bottle instead of worth 200 is prob worth about 20...

 

[jwpevahouse]

Not a bottle from the Clevenger catalog. I heard the reproduction may have been made in Yugoslavia. Probably since there are several details about the reproduction which don't say "Clevenger". Also, the "ARS" does not appear on the reproduction, only the original from what I've heard. I have the reproduction and my conclusion is yours is an original 1860s bottle because of the embossing. Nice find, a good bottle but not particularly rare.

 

[jwpevahouse]

I have an example of this bottle. It is definitely not Clevenger. But that doesn't mean it's not a reproduction. I've read speclation the bottle was made in Yugoslavia post World War II, maybe 1960s. No evidence the bottle was by the Clevengers. The original had ARS embossed for the glassworks. The reproduction isn't marked.

 

[jwpevahouse]

I aquired these bottle's three years ago and was cleaning today after stirring up hornets on some website but thats another story.................

The original Civil war period GIV-42 Calabash flask has the Union and Clasped hands symbols above a Masonic compass and Square and below the Compass and the square the word UNION in an ellipse shaped circle.The reverse side of the bottle has an Eagle flying to the right with a shield and pennants. The mold features are very prominent not weak.This flask was very popular around the time the Civil war was ending.It was later found out that the bottle commemerated the Junior Order of The United American Mechanics.This flask was made by A.R. Samuels Keystone Glassworks sometime around 1867.The bottle could also have been made in the Medford New Jersey Glassworks which Mr. Samuels owned for three years 1863 1864 and 1865.

Enter the Clevenger Brothers,This might just be the Clevenger Brothers and particularly Alie Clevenger's best work but as always seems the case the Clevenger Brothers copys always had glaring tell tale signs they were just plain copys of the originals.The easiest way to tell the original bottle from the Clevenger made reproduction is the lack of the initials A.R.S. under the Compass and square.The rest of the bottle is 95 percent accurate to the original.Another way to tell an original bottle is the sharp blowpipe pontil on all original's in stark contrast to the smooth based Clevenger made version.
Lastly the detail in the Eagle is faint on the Clevenger copy version along with lack of discernable pronounced fingers in the handshake.All in all a very easy flask to be stumped by........................It got me!![] I would like to warn others []

The Clevenger Brothers never made this bottle. It does not appear in any catalogs. It is believed to be of Eastern European manufacture but no one knows for sure. I have the modern bottle and it shows no characteristics of Clevenger glass.