Masonic bottle - looking for any information/value
Earliest known reference to this particular bottle is December 28, 1820. I have hand-written notes about its progress through the family.
Earliest known reference to this particular bottle is December 28, 1820. I have hand-written notes about its progress through the family.
Comments
Thanks for posting this. Few bottles have a provenance - mostly collectors track better bottles if they have been in important collections. It is quite unusual to find a bottle with documentation of its ownership in a family since the bottle was made.
Most collectors today refer to the McKearin flask charts, as noted in your last photo, the Masonic flasks are Group Four. Your flask is either a GIV-28 or GIV-28a. It is interesting to see the Van Rensselaer reference. That classification of flasks predates the McKearins and dates to the early 20th c.
Your flask appears to be in wonderful condition with a sharp mold impression.
It is hard to know if the provenance would increase the value of the bottle - probably more likely to a Masonic collector rather than someone interested in antique bottles. The bottle itself, however, assuming it is flawless would probably bring between 800-1000 at auction today.
Chris,
Thank you so very much for the additional information. Not being a collector, I just knew that the flask was old, and my mother had said it was valuable. Your thoughts on the value appear to be in line with what I was told by Mother. Back in the 70's she had said she thought the value then was around $600.