Capital Bitters – Washington, D.C.

Posted on 27 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Capital Bitters – Fuss Collection

Capital Bitters – Washington, D.C.

27 April 2011 (R•053017)

Boy is this bottle rare. I thought I had it pretty much under control with what was out there in the Bitters World until Sandor Fuss (was in Denver to see his collection for the 3rd time last week) showed me his Capital Bitters. I had never seen a picture before nor noticed the listing in the Ring/Ham Bitters Bottles Books. This is an extremely important bitters in shape, rarity, embossing and condition.

Capital Bitters – Sandor P. Fuss collection.

C 39 CAPITAL ( au ) / motif Capitol of U.S. / BITTERS COMPANY ( cd ) WASHINGTON, D.C. // motif framed oval // 10 ½ x 2 ¾ Round with 2 layer pedestal, Amber, LTCR, Extremely rare. Body convex from base up 3 ½ inches then concave to neck.

R/H Drawing

Posted in Bitters, Collectors & Collections, Figural Bottles | Tagged Capitol Bitters, D.C., sandor fuss, Washington | 1 Comment

The West Region Bulletin – April 2011

Posted on 26 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V

West Region Bulletin

Dave Maryo, FOHBC Western Director and Dar Furda, Contributing Editor put together a rather nice digital newsletter. West Region Bulletin April 1 2011.

Posted in Article Publications, Club News, FOHBC News | Tagged Dar Furda, Dave Maryo, fohbc, West Region Bulletin | 1 Comment

Australian Bottle Collectables Review

Posted on 25 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V

This gallery contains 7 photos.

I am on the mailing list for ABCR Auctions which is conducting an auction now. ABCR is headed up by Travis Dunn. Travis is based out of Victoria, Australia. Travis got me thinking about some of the Austrailian Bitters we … Continue reading →

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Happy Easter – CD 700 Egg Insulators

Posted on 24 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V

CD 700 Unmarked Insulator Eggs

From Pole Top Discoveries recently completed Auction 64.

Posted in Auction News, Holiday, Humor - Lighter Side, Insulators | Tagged CD 700, Egg Insulators, Happy Easter, Pole Top Discoveries | 1 Comment

FOHBC EXPO 2012 In Reno!

Posted on 23 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Posted in Advertising, Bottle Shows, FOHBC News | Tagged Expo 2012, fohbc, Marty Hall, Reno | Leave a comment

S.F. Gaslight Ammonia now Greer’s Washing Ammonia?

Posted on 23 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V

This gallery contains 2 photos.

S.F. Gaslight Ammonia now Greer’s Washing Ammonia? 23 April 2011 On my visit to see the Robert Frank Collection late last year in Lompoc, California I was drawn to this beautiful, light canary yellow bottle in one of his display … Continue reading →

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While visiting with the prominent collector Sandor Fuss this past week in Denver, I again was struck by the beauty, size and color of the famous Harrison’s Columbia Ink. This big ink would dominate any other display setting but somehow fits in with the rest of Sandor’s extraordinary collection of the Best of the Best Historical Flasks and Bitters Bottles. I had the opportunity to inspect this ink at the Bottles and More (BAM) Roger Long Auction when I visited Rod Walck in PA some time back.

Harrison's Columbian Ink - Fuss Collection

The Harrison’s Columbian Ink bottle is considered by many to be the top ink for good reason. Until you’ve actually seen one of these huge gallon master inks and held it in your hands, you don’t really get the overall spectacular impression that you do seeing it pictured.

These rarely come up for sale. The last one of note in an auction was probably the Glass Works Auction of the Beka and Bob Mebane Collection in 2002 and 2003. It was listed as follows:

GW Mebane Lot 179

“HARRISONS – COLUMBIAN – INK, (C-763), American, ca. 1845 – 1860, 12-sided, 10 1/2″ (gallon size), open pontil, tooled expanded mouth, perfect. When the premier ink collection of author Bill Covill was auctioned in 1980, the ink was featured on the front cover of the auction catalog. It sold for $8,000, by far the highest price piece in the auction. In 1992 it resurfaced again, this time in the Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors auction in Toledo, Ohio. Selling for $34,000. It was again the highest price item in the auction.

It is not known what Sandor paid for his exquisite example, though I suspect it far surpasses the prices noted above.

Posted on 23 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V | 1 Comment

Two Sexy Ladies – Cassin’s Grape Brandy Bitters

Posted on 23 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Cassin’s Grape Brandy Bitters – Frank Collection

Two Sexy Ladies – Cassin’s Grape Brandy Bitters

23 April 2011

Botero-Our Lady of Columbia

On a trip out west to visit the prominent collector Robert Frank late last year, I was able to see and hold two of my most favorite Bitters bottles which are pictured at the top of the post. The Cassin’s Grape Brandy Bitters are voluptuously formed bottles with sensitive and exaggerated curves just like a paintings by the Columbian figurative artist, Fernando Botero. His paintings and sculptures are united by their proportionally exaggerated shapes.

These bottles are sculptures and goddesses in the Antique Bottle world and should be revered.

According to noted researcher Warren Friedrich, the C78 & 79 Cassin’s variants are in his opinion, the quintessential western bitters bottle. The C79 mold variant is the earlier of the two and would be considered extremely rare in its rating; as there are only 7 existing examples in any condition, four in an amber coloration, two in yellow olive color and one in yellow green (or lime).

The C78 is the mold variant (see below) that is often seen in various bottle books. Approximately 20 some examples exist in collections presently. The most commonly seen examples are in medium to light greens, followed by various amber hues; with black glass (either dark green or dark amber) being extremely rare and aqua color variations being very rare with at least four examples known.

Cassin’s Grape Brandy Bitters (C 78) – Bitters Bottles Supplement

Posted in Bitters, Collectors & Collections, Figural Bottles | Tagged Cassin's Grape Brandy Bitters, Columbian, Fernando Botero, Robert Frank, Warren Friedrich, western bitters bottles | 2 Comments

Young America or Young Frankenstein?

Posted on 21 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Young America or Young Frankenstein?

21 April 2011 (R•110914) (R•111014)

Along with collecting and specializing in the beautiful color runs, I cherish the freakish and absurdly crude, rare and x-rare bitters squares. This example of a Young America Stomach Bitters was purchased on eBay back in 2002. It is so raw, crude and orange peeled that you can only imagine Young Frank drinking from it!! This bottle is to DIE for. When back illuminated, it looks like It’s Alive!

The Carlyn Ring and W.C. Ham listing in Bitters Bottles is as follows:

Y7 YOUNG AMERICA STOMACH BITTERS

YOUNG AMERICA // STOMACH / BITTERS // f // P. RINDSKOPF & BRO //
9 1/2 x 3 (6 1/2) 3/8
Square, Amber, LTC, Applied mouth, Rare

Young America Stomach Bitters – Meyer Collection

Rindskopf

They story starts here with Loeb Rindskopf from Bohemia who was one of the Jewish pioneers in Milwaukee arriving in the mid 1850s or so. He had a large family with many sons and daughters. Listings show a P. Rindskoph & Brother, wines and liquors (Phillip and Louis Rindskoph) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin city directories from 1862-1878 at 277 E. Water. There was also a L. Rindskoph & Son, wholesale wines and liquors (Leopold and Samuel Rindskoph) at 266 E. Water during the same years. Later they were in to bottling and brewing.

“P. Rindskoph & Bro” is embossed on the Young America Stomach Bitters. Phillip Rindskopf was born on March 16, 1836 in Bohemia and died on February 22, 1867 in Milwaukee ward 15, at the young age of 31. Prior to this, Isham & Company (Percy Ray Isham) was selling the bitters per the advertisement below. They were sole agents in Milwaukee.

Read: Isham’s Stomach Bitters – Chicago

Take note of what appears to be a black women with a top hat carrying an oversized bottle of Young America Stomach Bitters. Pretty cool. I see some characters on the hat? Are those two little swords? I am missing some of the symbolism though this is Civil War era.

IshamAd2The_Daily_Milwaukee_News_Sat__Sep_21__1861_ copy

Isham & Co. selling the Celebrated Young America Stomach Bitters – The Daily Milwaukee News, Saturday, September 21, 1861

Isham’s Celebrated Stomach Bitters label – Library of Congress

The very similar, Isham’s Stomach Bitters – Meyer Collection

Posted in Bitters, eBay, History, Humor - Lighter Side, Liquor Merchant, Medicines & Cures | Tagged bitters, eBay, Isham, Meyer, Meyer Collection, milwaukee, Rindskopf & Bro, Wisconsin, Young America Stomach Bitters, Young Frankenstein | Leave a comment

Maryo Visit to the Getty Villa

Posted on 20 April 2011 by Ferdinand Meyer V

Just in from Dave Maryo (FOHBC Western Region Director and President Los Angeles Historical Bottle Club) who with his wife Cindy, just visited the Getty Villa in Malibu this past weekend to see the Greek and Roman glass on display. It is amazing according to Dave. “Collectors of antique glass highly prize bottles that just started being embossed with designs in the early 1800’s. Embossed mold blown glass was a common art form two thousand years prior“.

Dave, who has a passion for early glass, went specifically to see the Erwin Oppenländer collection. There are over 180 ancient glass objects in the collection. The Oppenländer collection, which the Getty acquired in 2003, is remarkable for its cultural and chronological breadth. It includes works made in Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Greek world, and the Roman Empire, and spans the entire period of ancient glass production, from its origins in Mesopotamia in about 2500 B.C. to Byzantine and Islamic glass of the eleventh century A.D. Also notable in the Oppenländer collection is the variety of ancient glassmaking techniques, such as casting, core forming, mosaic, inflation, mold blowing, cameo carving, incising, and cutting. All these techniques are still used by glass artists today.

Just a few of Dave’s visit photographs are posted below.Thanks Dave!! Bet this is on my agenda next time I’m out west.