Green Pharmaceutical Bottle Neck Fragment (Archaeological Find)
Title:
Green Pharmaceutical Bottle Neck Fragment
Subject:
James Hubbard, an upper class student at Harvard, was alleviated from the pains from being poor, but still faced the struggles of contracting diseases like every other member of society. In the late 1700s, Hubbard was diagnosed with smallpox. He found himself carrying a green, tubular pharmaceutical bottle that held ailments that would apparently make him feel better. The free-blown pharmaceutical phial that Hubbard held was similar to many that were made in the 18th century, with a short neck, sloping and narrow shoulder, and a shallow kick-up base. Luckily, Hubbard did not have to travel far to gather his medication from a lecturer at the Harvard Medical School, Dr. Lynman Spalding. The founder of the first pharmacopeia and a major contributor to the smallpox vaccine, Spalding was the most qualified doctor of Cambridge at the time. Therefore, Hubbard had to trust that Spalding’s concoction of elixir vitriol, Jamaica pepper, cinnamon, and ginger placed inside his green-glassed bottle was going to make him feel better. Most of the medical treatments used for Harvard students, and for the colonies over all, was done by trial and error and included many absurd treatments like extreme bleeding, purging, and even leeching.
Source:
A brief history of pharmacy: humanity's search for wellness. (2016). Choice Reviews Online, 53(11).
doi:10.5860/choice.196974
Davies, P., Crook, P., & Murray, T. (2013). An archaeology of institutional confinement: the Hyde Park Barracks, 1848-1886. The University Of Sydney, N.S.W.: Sydney University Press.
Gibson, J., & Evans, J. (1985). Some Eighteenth-Century Pharmaceutical Vessels from London. Post-Medieval Archaeology, 19(1), 151-155. doi:10.1179/pma.1985.007
Pharmaceutical Glass in Post-Medieval London: a Proposed ... (n.d.). Retrieved May 2, 2017, from https://www.bing.com/cr?IG=47EC3DB93DB94FF4ADA56A77A93F6137&CID=12E6E583424962000047EFF543D96312&rd=1&h=OfYl7_N_t5hCaDrgfcfID_Lo6Hvz3MA4NLfOxEYTcp0&v=1&r=https%3a%2f%2fwww.researchgate.net%2fpublication%2f265852181_Pharmaceutical_Glass_in_Post-Medieval_London_a_Proposed_Typology&p=DevEx,5062.1
https://iiif.lib.harvard.edu/manifests/view/drs:53118936$19i
https://iiif.lib.harvard.edu/manifests/view/drs:53371711$4i
Object Name:
Green Pharmaceutical Bottle Neck Fragment
Inventory Description:
Two fragments of green, medium-thickness 18th century pharmaceutical glass. The pieces fit together and are smooth to the touch. One piece is part of the short neck and the other is part of the body of the glass. The glass also appears to be uneven, giving clues that it was handblown.
Peabody Number:
2016.29.947
Culture/Period:
Late 18th Century
Intrasite:
H929 Level 1
Depth:
40-50 cm
Class 1:
Glass
Class 2:
Bottle Glass
Class 3:
Green Bottle Glass
Quantity:
2
Height (cm):
8.3 cm
Width (cm):
5.4
Depth/Thickness (cm):
.8 cm