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Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Found In The Woods - Bottles

It seems over the years of hunting in wooded areas around Maryland, a place that is so rich in the history of our country, one is bound to stumble upon relics of the past. Especially those with a keen eye to the ground looking for deer sign. I can recollect coming across old house sites and foundation walls, rock fences, rusted hulks and pieces of cast iron cookware and pot bellied stoves, barrel bands, decrepit bits of horse drawn farm equipment, and myriads of unrecognizable metal junk. Every so often one finds some glass. More often than not when glass is discovered it has long since been broken or shot. The following pictures are from my little discoveries out in the woods. Often times these little gems are just as satisfying, if not more so, than the taking of a game animal in the hunt. These pieces each represent hundreds of broken containers found. Often it is just the thick glass neck that survives. Holding one of these old intact relics and wondering who had last grasped the slender neck and discarded them to the forces of nature makes a person reflect upon his own mortality and how fleeting the times come and go. To have something so fragile as glass survive the rigors of weather and decades of human assault is wondrous and special. Old stamped glass holds an additional layer of rarity, as well as connection with the local businesses and people that created and used the bottle that have long since disappeared.
Vermifuge Baltimore, MD
Lucky Tiger Remedy Co. Kansas City, MO
Victor's Infant Relief Frederick, MD
Kehne's Bottling Works Frederick, MD
An old brown glass bottle with a hand applied lip. Probably the plainest, yet oldest I have found.
Johann Hoffman whiskey complete with cork!
C.F. Willard Knoxville, MD
Whiskey Pint
JAC Lipps Frederick, MD
R. Hauser Frederick, MD

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