Ink bottle? Unknown stopper....what is it

This was gotten at an online action this way. The stopper will hold 1 1/2 teaspoons of liquid. Was it hollow for a dosage measurement?...or to be used as an inkwell?...and was it supposed to be in a brown bottle?...maybe not even a match.


Comments

  • Definitely not ink.


    I seem to think this is a medical device similar to the Vapo-Cresaline lamps for vaporizing a liquid but I might be remembering incorrectly...

    Hope this gets you on the right track. Do report back what you find.


    Chris

  • I can't find anything along those lines....yet, still searching though. I forgot to mention that it is a T.C.W. Co. clear bottle on bottom. They made a lot of medical and chemical, so I'm still thinking along those lines.

  • Could it have been used in a lab , with a liquid in the clear bottom over a bunsen burner....and something else in the stopper?

  • Mystery solved! It is...

    A balsam bottle for storing/applying microscope slide mounting media.… Canada Balsam is a natural mounting medium obtained from balsam fir trees for microscopy. The optical properties are nearly identical with those of glass. Specimens must be dehydrated. Permanent slides mounted with balsam have been stored for over a century. The glass tube applicator (which this is missing along with the cap) is held in place by a thin wire that winds around the inside of the metal cap. Neck of bottle and brown tinted glass insert are ground glass to promote a better seal. Bottom of bottle marked: T. C. W. Co. U.S.A. Main bottle contains approximately 35mL and upper insert contains approximately 9 mL to upper neck constriction. Gluing microscope specimens to slides! They say some of these balsam glued specimen slides have survived for over a century.

    Thank you Chris and all who took a look...some of the modern day bottles for this purpose can sell for up to $500.


  • T. C. W. Co. U.S.A. = T.C. Wheaton of Millville NJ

    Great detective work @Bobby1 - thanks for posting your discovery!

Sign In or Register to comment.