Early Lattice / Quilted Bottles

by Richard Sheaff

Ihave been interested for decades in an enigmatic type of bottle nobody seems to know anything about. Over the years I have discussed them with many glass folks, searched museum records and holdings, and consulted many books about early glass both American and foreign. Th us far, nada.

Lane and Pappas (A Rare Collection of Keene & Stoddard Glass, 1970, Plate 4) included two such bottles, both 8-sided, shown along with various Keene “quilted” blown three mold bottles, speculating — based on color — that possibly they were early Keene products. Th at attribution has never gained traction.

I have three related bottles in my collection, two 8-sided and one 4-sided.

I have heard various tentative guesses about their age and origin over the years. Many think them older than the earliest New England glass. Some think they may have been made in Holland, or Germany, or the Middle-East, or Spain. One European dealer I queried a few years back said that he thought they were Victorian-

INSET: The two bottles shown in Lane and Pappas. The one on the left is 9 1/2” tall, the one on the right 8 1/2” with a “notched” (pinched) applied neck ring. BACKGROUND: This bottle looks to be another example the Lane and Pappas bottles. It is 9 1/2” tall, olive green with streaks of amber. It was blown into a mold, with the mouth snapped off the blowpipe. An applied neck ring was then added, pinched in a decorative way.

Lane and Pappas (A Rare Collection of Keene & Stoddard Glass, 1970, Plate 4) included two such bottles, both 8-sided, shown along with various Keene “quilted” blown three mold bottles, speculating — based on color — that possibly they were early Keene products. Th at attribution has never gained traction.

era revivals of much earlier designs. But he had no information about exactly which earlier designs, or the location of said earlier bottles, which is what I am seeking to learn. Personally, I suspect that they are quite early, not Victorian copies, perhaps from Holland or thereabouts. Th e technique of attaching the pontil to the mouth, breaking it off , and then applying a neck ring is an ancient technique.

If anyone out there has solid information about bottles of this sort, I would love to learn more. dicksheaff @gmail.com

TOP: This one has a similar lattice pattern, but was made differently with the pontil being applied to the base. It is dark amber in color, 7 1/2” tall with an applied smooth neck ring. BOTTOM: This rectangular bottle is badly damaged. It is 9 1/4” tall, made in the same fashion as the Lane and Pappas bottles and the similar one of mine, with the mouth snapped off the blowpipe. A smooth applied neck ring has been added. It has a lattice pattern more or less identical to the others. This one came to me from a woman, since deceased, who also owned an identical intact example. When I saw her again many years later she no longer had the intact bottle and no recollection of where it had ended up.