Glass Vessel Fragment (Archaeological Find)

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Title:

Glass Vessel Fragment

Subject:

This glass fragment was from what seems to be the bottom of a medicine glass. This bottle from the shape, pontil mark, and depth of discovery seems to be from late 17th or early 18th century. It seems to be a medicine bottle due to the size, shape, and slight green hue. The bottle size does not seem to show that it was angular at the top. The size of the bottle indicates that it was not used as a glass but rather as a vessel to store something. This bottle does not seem like it would be ornate or have heavy branding of the vessel. This is why it seems as though the local doctor or pharmacist was using this bottle to sell or give medicine to their patients to keep and store their medicine. At the time, there was not much access to doctors so people would have to live with pain and ailments due to the isolated nature of the early colonial New Englanders which leads people to have to store medicines in these glass bottles to self-treat and diagnose. Health concerns affected people of all social and economic status which is why medicine bottles would be found for most homes.

Source:

Source 1:
https://sha.org/bottle/medicinal.htm
Over the years, medicine bottles changed shapes and colors depending on the branding to the pharmacist. Before the Pure Food and Drug Act, the branding and drug information available was up to the pharmacist.

Source 2:
http://colonialnorthamerica.library.harvard.edu/spotlight/cna/feature/medicine-in-colonial-north-america
Doctors in early colonial North America were also businessmen. Selling these medicines and their bottles was very important due to how isolated people tended to be.

Source 3:
Noël Hume, Ivor. Historical Archaeology. 1st Ed.] ed. New York: Knopf : Distributed by Random House, 1969.
Medicine bottles over time have changed in shape and form. In the early seventeenth century, medicine bottles were often made in England. As time went on, the bottles became more angular.

Object Name:

Glass Vessel

Inventory Description:

Glass Vessel

Peabody Number:

2018.24.506

Intrasite:

H963 Level 3

Depth:

70 - 80 cm

Class 1:

Glass

Class 2:

Bottle Glass

Class 3:

Aqua Bottle Glass

Quantity:

1

Height (cm):

3.64

Width (cm):

3.64

Depth/Thickness (cm):

1.43

Notes:

It has a pontil mark.