Weird looking bottle

[downsouthdiggers]

This is a strange looking, un-marked bottle that I bought as a "Potion Bottle" for my 5 year old. The guy said he thinks it may have been a barber toilet water bottle that just didnt make the cut. I'm not sure about it, it has seams down both sides even tho it appears that the bottom was added on to the rounded bottle, the seam goes all the way from around the bottom of the neck to the bottom of the bottle. IDK if its a reproduction of some sort or what, any ideas?

 

[downsouthdiggers]

3

 

[downsouthdiggers]

Did I stump the pros?

 

[surfaceone]

The guy said he thinks it may have been a barber toilet water bottle that just didnt make the cut. I'm not sure about it,

Hey Nathan,

It appears to be a Priof finish

"The "PRIOF" closure is actually a finish variation for the crown cap intended to make it easier to remove the cap in that it could be "pried off" with a non-standard opener without breaking the bottle. Paul & Parmalee (1973) describe this finish and origin quite well and are quoted below:

One of the last minor changes or variations of the crown closure was the development of the "Priof" method of bottle finish by the Illinois Glass Company. The crown bottle, appearing in the early 1920s, had a projecting ledge below the lip of the crown which assisted the consumer in opening the bottle. By using the ledge as a point of leverage, one could easily pry off the cap by using a knife, key, coin or any flat piece of metal. One needed only to insert the lever between the ledge and the cap and twist. Although this type of bottle finish was used sporadically through the years, it never became popular enough to dominate the market. However, its major advertising feature was that it substantially reduced the number of broken and chipped bottles which resulted from the use of various unconventional openers.

The "ledge" is visible in the image just above the "PRIOF" embossing; in fact, the embossing is on the outside face of the ledge. This finish was usually (always?) embossed with REGISTERED PATENTED "PRIOF" horizontally on the lower part of the finish, as shown in the image above. This finish was not being offered in the 1920 Illinois Glass Company catalog so must have been invented/patented shortly thereafter as noted by Paul & Parmalee above (IGCo. 1920; Paul & Parmalee 1973). It appears that this finish/closure was by far most commonly used on Citrate of Magnesia bottles made during the 1920s and 1930s, though undoubtedly saw some other use as a beverage finish/closure." From.

Your photos are difficult to "read" it appears to have been melted in a fire, to me. Are those stickers on the neck?