c.1880 Primitive Antique Ship in Bottle Folk Tramp A (06/05/2011)...

Home > Worthopedia – Price Guide > Transportation and Vehicles >

c.1880 Primitive Antique Ship in Bottle Folk Tramp Art

Terms and Conditions for using our site

c.1880 Primitive Antique Ship in Bottle Folk Tramp Art

Sold For:

or Sign In to see what it's worth.

Sold Date: 06/05/2011
Channel: Online Auction
Source: eBay
Category: Transportation and Vehicles

Re-Listing ... A couple of weeks ago I pulled this ship in bottle off eBay because I decided I wanted to keep it. Now I'm re-listing it because I've (again) changed my mind and decided to sell it. If you see a pattern here, it's this -- I do indeed waver back and forth over some of the sibs I post on eBay. I love this little pumpkinseed and hope that someone appreciates its special place in the history of folk art. This sib is ANCIENT. Very possibly it is older than 1880 ... but I'm selling it because I have quite a few other pumpkinseeds. As I've said before, I don't feel a need to die with the most toys. So long as I continue to collect sibs, I will have to let some nice ones go. Like this one. Those who have eyes (and appreciation) will see ... this sib is unique. The following description is the same as what I posted last month ...
An Introduction To Pumpkin-seed Flask Ships in Bottles ... This particular ship in bottle has been in my permanent collection for quite a while, and I'm now offering it to high-end sib collectors who appreciate its primitive beauty. First of all, these types of ships in bottles are very rare. They come up occasionally, but not very often. Secondly, these bottles are extremely old -- we're talking about an era from 1870-1890. The only reason this sib isn't priced two or three times the listed price is that it lacks a wooden plug crosspiece. Indeed, just such a pumpkin-seed ship in bottle with such a crosspiece plug sold recently for $550 -- take a look at item No. 110628724398 on eBay. The one I'm offering is obviously more primitive than the Dayton bottle -- and the price reflects that difference. But both are from the same era ... and are among the earliest types of ships in bottles that we can comfortably date to c. 1880. Same church, different pew. I have three other pumpkin-seed flask sibs in my collection made by that same Civil War veteran from Dayton, Thomas Edwards (similar to the one referenced above), and on one of those flasks, Edwards affixed a label with the date it was made -- 1882. With that kind of provenance, we know with certainty the approximate age of this one. It could even be older than 1880.
Age And Rarity and Valuation ... There will be some who look at this sib and think it's a steep price for something so primitive. But they would be missing the point. All ships in bottles are different and unique. What makes this one worth even more than the listed price is just what I said above -- rarity and age. In addition, condition is a factor affecting value and pricing, and in that regard, there isn't one thing wrong with this flask. There is no loose rigging, no loose shards inside the bottle. The fact that it is primitive is relevant to the era in which it was made -- among the very earliest ships in bottle made in the USA. The person who appreciates that kind of beauty and wants to add a pumpkin-seed flask to their sib collection is the person who will buy this one. Moreover, even if you ripped the lovely ship out of its flask, the flask itself would have value as an antique bottle. On page 189 of Polak's "Antique Trader Bottles Identification & Price Guide," a similar 1880]s pumpkin-seed flask (with embossing) is listed at $100-150.
Details, Details ... The flask measures 5.5 inches (14 cm) high and is about 4 inches (9 cm) wide and 1 inch deep. Note: the cork is not original. Consistent with bottles of this era, the flask was made with a two seam hand-blown mold, with both the neck and the bottom added after the main body of the glass was blown. The bottle has numerous defects -- stretched glass and bubbles. And virtually all collectors like to see those kind of defects as reflective of its age. The model inside the flask is not glued down, but it will travel without any problem -- I can remove the cork and insert a tissue to stabilize the sib for transit. On the ship model, the hull is nicely carved, and the patina of the hull and masts is very dark brown. The bottle sits nicely on its flat bottom and needs ...