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  • Artifact ID #: 1529
  • Excavation Unit: 5S 20W
  • Level: 0-40cmbs
  • Identification: Base of a mouth-blown "French Square" druggist or medicinal bottle. Without the rest of the body, neck and finish, it is difficult to provide an exact identification of the bottle, but the style dates it to the 1870s through 1910. These types of square bottles were used commonly in over-the-counter liquid medicines produced in the United States and England during the 1800s and early 1900s. While many medicines that came in these bottles had some purpose in treating illness, many were frauds that did no good to the consumer. In addition, many of these medicines contained high amounts of alcohol, and sometimes liquid forms of opium, and many consumers bought the bottles for these contents not the medicine. Chinese or Euro-Americans in German Gulch could have bought this bottle to cure a particular ailment or for the other benefits brought by alcohol.


Additional Artifacts:

  • ID1101
  • ID934
  • ID3487
  • ID1249
  • ID1529
  • ID1960