17th Century Wine found in a Shipwreck.

https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a27632499/17th-century-wine-discovered/;

Interesting seals on the above 17th century wine bottles, my 18th century karaf came with the same type of seal.

Material Culture Links.

Blankets: https://www.scribd.com/document/288097548/Bedding-Blankets
Bottles: https://www.scribd.com/document/200132228/Drinking-Bottles-Cases-Tickets

Native Americans 16th & 17th Century: https://www.scribd.com/document/265679506/Native-Americans-16th-to-17th-Century-Images

Cotton Textiles: https://www.scribd.com/document/270069127/Textiles-Cotton
Keith.

Securing Corked Bottles 2. Another Way.

Cover the cork with a piece of cloth or light leather & tie around the neck of the bottle.

Securing Corked Bottles. The Beer Knot.

Australia. Wreck Preservation Ale: where to try the rich, dark brew salvaged from the deep.

https://www.afr.com/lifestyle/food-and-wine/wreck-preservation-ale-where-to-try-the-rick-dark-brew-salvaged-from-the-deep-20180522-h10eef

Fragments of 18th-century wine bottle found decades apart now back together in South Carolina

Wragg wine bottle 1722.

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2018/05/02/fragments-18th-century-wine-bottle-found-decades-apart-now-back-together-in-south-carolina.html

More on Food Packaging.

A Firkin.

http://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/james-d-julia/catalogue-id-srjame10004/lot-0f75d439-6d36-4cf0-9495-a43000b5b031;

In the 18th century bottles, jars & cloth bags were popular items for containing a variety of foods, spices & drinks. Bottles in particular have been found at many historical sites, & it is known that they were reused for containing a variety of liquids. 
It seems that commercial sales of foods stuffs was in bulk form, suggesting that the retail purchaser would supply their own containers for the amount they wished to purchase, but also money was offered by some businesses for bottles, suggesting that some retailers offered these bottles to customers.

Some of the author's items for repackaging food & drink products.

Below is a record of commercial 18th century food & drink containers. This information is from a PDF, the link to which I have supplied. This PDF contains much more information, including containers from the 19th century, & images of original containers.

Food & Drink Packaging.

Olive oil sold in flasks and jars is an example of this product/package link.

mustard in quarter-pound bottles, pickles in quart bottles, olive oil by the jar or chest.

Kegs were used for dried goods such as split peas, barley, crackers, oatmeal, raisins, and rice; for butter, lard, or paint oils; for pickled meats and other pickles; sometimes for alcohol and sometimes for other packaging:

Hogs Lard in small kegs from 20 to 28 lbs. each (QG 26 May 1785:Richard Dalton).

Barley in 50 and 25 lb cags (New-York Mercury [NYM] 26 Jan. 1761:John Alexander and Company).

Best Nantz Brandy in 8 and 4 Gallon Kegs (NYM 3 Aug. 1761 :Dirck Brinckerhoff).

Choice French Brandy in Kegs of 5 and 6 Gallons, at five Shillings Halifax per Gallon (QG 20 Dec. 1770:John Lees). Linseed oyl in 10 gallon cags (NYM 12 Jan. 1761:Isaac Man).

 7 Kegs Mustard in 1-4 lb. bottles (Montreal Herald [MH] 22 Jan. 1820:Macnider, Aird, & Whyte).

Chocolate by the Box or Dozen (NYM 1 June 1761:John Morton). A few boxes fresh Durham flour mustard, (NSG&WC 30 June 1789:s. Hart).

 lb. bottles A very fresh, excellent Kind of Poland Starch and Hair Powder in Boxes of Cwt. each in Pound papers (NSG&WC 24 May 1785:David Fergusson).

fine Genoa Vermacelli, at 1s. a Pound, or 14s. a Box, containing seventeen Pounds (DA 14 Dec. 1739:Joseph Carbon).

Lemmons by the Box, Hundred or Dozen (Boston Gazette & Country Journal [BG&CJ] 14 March 1774:Joseph Hall).

bohea tea by the box, dozen or single pound (NYM 23 June 1755:Matheus Sleght).

Bags held dry products such as bottle corks, biscuit, flour, coffee, and sometimes ginger, pepper, snuff, and cocoa nuts.

Cheshire Cheese by the Basket or Single Cheese (NSG&WC 14 June 1785:Edward Oxnard).

Gloucester Cheese by the Basket or smaller quantity (NSG&WC 23 Feb. 1779:Andrew Thomson).

bohea and congo teas, pound, half and quarter pound tin cannisters (NYM 4 Oct. 1762:Richard Curson).

He has likewise a parcel of fine green tea, in pound canisters, at 14s. a canister (NYM 29 Dec. 1766:Edward Agar).

Portable soup, of the best Sorts, made separately from Beef, Veal, Mutton, and Chicken, is sold at 4s. a Dozen in Tin Boxes, which is about equal to 8s. a Pound, excepting the Chicken. Also an inferior Sort made into square Cakes from Beef, is sold by Weight at 5s. a Pound, very handy for Sauces as well as Soups. . . . This Commodity has been made, ever since the late Rebellion, by Mrs. Bennet (whose Name was then Du Bois) and it was at that Time, and ever since, greatly valued by Gentlemen in the Army (DA 11 Sept. 1762:Portable Soup.

Naples soap, at 5s a pot, Containing eight ounces (DA 31 Jan. 1740:Joseph Carbn). A Fine parcel of New Honey, of this year’s collecting in glazed Pots, leather’d on the Top, and in Pots from 15 lb. to 35 lb. and to be sold as follows: Single Pots at Fourpence Halfpenny per Pound, and at Forty Shillings per Hundred; and some Allowance to those who take a larger Quantity (DA 17 Sept. 1762:To be Sold at the Windmill . . . ). Potted Venison in small Pots at Six-pence per Pot (DA 29 July 1760:To be Sold, Fine true Grass fed Venison . . . ).

Lately landed a curious Parcel of Bloom Sun Raisins, much finer than any in the Jars, in small Boxes about 12 Ib. each, to be sold by the Importer . . . at 7s. a Pound. No less Quantity than a Box (DA 4 Jan. 1762: Lately landed.

Twenty Jars of very fine Lucca Oil, each Jar containing about thirty Gallons, one Jar in each lot (DA 21 NOV. 1739:To be soid by Auction.

 Fine Lucca Sallad Oil, neat as imported, in whole Jars, Half-jars, and Quarter-Jars (DA 23 May 1740:To be Sold . . . ).

http://www.sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/Jones1993.pdf

OSV Documents - Glass in New England

http://resources.osv.org/explore_learn/document_viewer.php?Action=View&DocID=1068

My thanks to Gorges for this link: http://www.baronstiegellions.org/aboutHWStiegel.html

Flasks, Pocket & Saddle.

Flasks, Pocket & Saddle.

Finding the right type of water bottle for your persona & period seems to be an ongoing quest, or at least it is for me. I have tinned iron military water bottles but they don’t hold much water & I prefer something from an earlier period. Being quite old now, I feel more comfortable with an earlier period water container. I have a costrel, but the sealant inside failed & exposed the leather & fouled the water. I have re-sealed this bottle, but in doing so I overheated the costrel & shrunk it. It did seal, but now I don’t trust it.

Recently someone in one of the Ranger groups asked for advice on what type of water bottle he should get. In my search for more information I used the term “flask”. This surprisingly brought up the name “saddle flask”. Further searching brought up “pocket or saddle flask”.

Now this is a new one on me, so I researched further. Most of the saddle flasks I found were Persian, but I did manage to find some English flasks, & some American flasks.

Early American glass. The first factory in what is now the United States was a glass plant built at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1608. The venture failed within a year because of a famine that took the lives of many colonists. The Jamestown colonists tried glassmaking again in 1621, but an Indian attack in 1622 and the scarcity of workers ended this attempt in 1624. The industry was reestablished in America in 1739, when Caspar Wistar built a glassmaking plant in what is now Salem County, New Jersey. This plant operated until 1780.

http://www.texasglass.com/glass_facts/history_of_Glass.htm

This is purportedly an American saddle flask. From the name I think we can safely assume that this large leather covered water bottle was carried on a riding saddle or in a market wallet tied to the saddle or similar. Then there is the accompanying name of “pocket flask”. I think this is a mistake, because further research indicates that these are two different flasks, & I think these pocket flasks were meant to be carried in a coat pocket.

http://oldsouthjerseyglass.com/antiques?id=11&Category=Bottles-and-Jars;

This green glass saddle flask is also reportedly an American flask.

Large circa 1760 colonial American black glass flask.

Wistarburgh Saddle Flask 18th Century.

http://oldsouthjerseyglass.com/antiques?id=11&Category=Bottles-and-Jars;

Rich, dark green American chestnut with hemp wicker. 4” tall and 2 3/8” at the widest point. Recovered during 1961 demolition of historic building in downtown Philadelphia. Found inside a wall. This one I assume is a pocket flask.

http://www.peachridgeglass.com/2012/07/those-miniature-globs-and-pocket-flasks/;

Pocket flask. American 1765-74.

https://ancientglass.wordpress.com/museums-glass-collections-and-exhibitions/glass-collections-the-philadelphia-museum-of-art/;

Midwestern flask 1815-40.

https://ancientglass.wordpress.com/museums-glass-collections-and-exhibitions/glass-collections-the-philadelphia-museum-of-art/;

This image shows an English leather costrel on the left, & a leather saddle flask on the right.

http://www.christies.com/lotfinder/lot/an-english-leather-bottle-and-a-5815336-details.aspx;

More Information: http://historical-american-glass.com/hilltown-glass-works-bucks-county-pennsylvania-1751-1766.html

http://historical-american-glass.com/glass-house-whimseys-1750-to-1880.html

http://historical-american-glass.com/wistarburgh-glass.html

18th Century Bottles and Cork Stoppers.

From the research I have done to date, bottle corks appear to have been straight sided or possibly had a slight taper. Bottle corks were manufactured from the bark of the Cork Oak tree.

Original 1712 bottle corks.

http://www.aia.umd.edu/seeking_liberty/RTwine_tobacco.html;

By Chardin.

By Chardin.

Unknown French artist 18th century.

Cork Making By Diderot.

Detail of cork making By Diderot.

Corkscrew Ring with Cover c. 1700 - 1730.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/200132228/Drinking-Glass-Bottles-Decanters;

English or American Corkscrew & Pick c. 1725 - 1800(Winterthur)

http://www.scribd.com/doc/200132228/Drinking-Glass-Bottles-Decanters;

Folding Flat Bow corkscrew.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/200132228/Drinking-Glass-Bottles-Decanters;

English Silver & Iron Corkscrew and Caseby John Harvey of London c. 1750.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/200132228/Drinking-Glass-Bottles-Decanters;

A Leather Covered Bottle from Kari.

Another great looking bottle, images by Kari. Going by the shape of the mouth of the bottle, I would date this mid to late 19th century, so say 1840 to maybe 1880.

Images Copyright Kari.

Thoughts on 18th Century food packaging.

I started off researching packaging for chocolate, and really did not get very far. This led me to wonder about other forms of food packaging, and I did not get far there either! So I decided to apply my past experimental archaeology experience and some common sense, and decided, at least for now, that there really are not many choices.
Paper bags were not a commercial product until the late 18th century to 19th century, though in 1743, John Bartram with a supply of paper from London, did make his own paper bags, both large and small to hold seeds (New Green World, Josephine Herbst, page 71). Of course at this time paper was made from flax, not from wood as it is today, and later they made paper from old linen rags. So I guess there is a precedent for using paper.

Leather and cloth food bags plus a couple of glass bottles. Pottery was also used, but it tends to be too heavy for packing on foot. Glass although fragile, can be wrapped in cloth or covered in leather.

Then there are linen bags and leather pouches, both of which have been used in a variety of sizes for centuries for carrying and storing foods. We also know that items intended originally for one use, were often used for for others once empty. such as bottles. Wine and spirit bottles could be used for carrying water or even cooking oil (Encyclopedia Of The American Revolution).
One chap found that a powder horn he had found did not contain gunpowder...

"Found my powder horn was filled with spirits and got drunk as a wheel barrow.”
Constant Belcher of Elizabethtown 1776.
http://greensleeves.typepad.com/berkshires/ogden_genealogy/

This cloth sack was used for provisions in a 1910 expedition and contains cocoa powder. Now I realise that 1910 is 200 years too late for us, but I figure if it was still in use two hundred years later, then it was probably a favoured method for carrying food provisions in the earlier period. Flour was carried in cloth sacks, so why not cocoa powder.

Spices could be carried in a small or large bottle, or they could have been contained in some folded paper, as in perhaps an envelope. This in turn could be secured in a cloth bag.

This I would have taken for a replica, but the tag sais it is medieval period and it is in the museum of London.

 These three images of drawstring pouches are from Diderot's 18th century encyclopedia.

Talking of Period Bottles.

My Mother-in-law came out to stay for the weekend last week, and brought a couple of bottles of Champaign with her. Well I could'nt let her drink alone could I, and come Monday there were two empty bottles.
Then this week I found these on the net whilst researching:

Found in a ship wreck, these Champaign style bottles turned out to be "Cognac Brandy" bottles, dated late 17th century to early 18th century.

One bottle had gone to the recycling Monday morning when my wife went to town, but the other was still here. So..........

Voila!

I have read that during the early to mid 18th century many bottle lables were hand written. I might try that next time. Have to invite Mother-in-law back again soon!