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History of Vintage purple bottles

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Hi there everyone! Let’s learn about the History of Vintage purple bottles.

History of purple bottles

Hope you are having a great week. Today I am sharing some History of Vintage purple bottles. I found these vintage purple bottles last year at a local antique mall.  They were not that expensive.  The prices varied per size.  I think the most I paid for the largest bottle was $6.00.  I fell in love with the amethyst and thought it was very unique.  I have seen greens, reds and blues but this was a first for me.

 I always like to learn something new and thought I would pass that along to you.

purple vintage bottles and the History of Vintage purple bottles

 Upon exposure to sunlight, this glass will turn a light pink or lavender to moderately dark amethyst or purple depending on the amount of manganese and amount of ultraviolet (UV) light.   This is called “sun-purpled” or “sun colored amethyst ” (SCA) glass.This bottle began its life as colorless glass and has “turned” a much darker than average color of amethyst due to the exposure to (likely artificial) UV light .  The light lavender tint produced by manganese offsets the green tint of the iron impurities in sand creating a largely colorless glass.The Venetians apparently discovered by the 15th century that manganese could be used to decolorize glass.  Manganese became known as “glass makers soap” due to the ability to “cleanse” or neutralize the effects of other impurities in the sand, particularly iron (Hunter 1950).  

History of purple bottles
Manganese dioxide induced colorless glass was, however, by far most commonly used from the 1880s to about the end of World War 1.  At that time manganese dioxide use was greatly reduced for a variety of reasons, although largely because it did not work as well as other chemical decolorizers ( in the open continuous glass tanks used by the increasingly dominant bottle making machines – both semi-automatic and automatic. 
It is often noted in the literature that the reason for the switch from manganese dioxide to other decolorants was due to the cut-off of German imports to the U. S. during WW1.  Although all imports from Germany (and Europe in general) were greatly constricted during this time, Germany was not a significant source of manganese for the U. S., providing only 2% of the imported manganese supplies in 1910 just prior to the war (Kendrick 1964; Lockhart 2006b). 
It should be noted that occasional manganese dioxide decolorized bottles may date as early as the 1820s or as late as the 1930s, although the large majority of bottles made with manganese decolorized glass were made between about 1890 and 1920. Source
 Now isn’t that interesting?
I found some other pretty images of purple vintage bottles.
purple-pansy-centerpieces-vintage-bottles
Purple and pansies
purple glass bottles
vintage purple bottles
I never knew the history behind colored class.
I obviously love it and have tempted a time or two to dye glass myself.
My first dyed glass vase was such a hit, I went on to do a few more.
 You can check out my Rit dye gallery to see for yourself just how you too can dye glass.
Fireplace with vintage bottles
In fact, this old recycled stained glass window I stained glass myself.
 You can see a pattern or a color trend of purple with me lately.
 Purple or violet assists those who seek the meaning of life and spiritual fulfillment – it expands our awareness, connecting us to a higher consciousness. For this reason it is associated with transformation of the soul and the philosophers of the world are often attracted to it.
Just call me a philosopher:)
That’s your history lesson for today.
vintage look in family room
And yes, my coffee table is a mess, and pillows are scattered about.  It’s summertime, who cares!
I made some changes to the mantel and made a fun new banner.  Will share soon.
Just something fast and simple before Fall gets here.
If you ever missed my history lessons on the meaning of a red door
or perhaps the history of stained glass.
 You can hang out for a while and brush up on your history.
Very interesting.
Thanks for stopping over today.
XO

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Decorating with vintage scales
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Filed Under: DIY, thrift, thrifting, thrifty, Vintage, Vintage style

Comments

  1. Shenita says

    August 12 at 7:35 am

    How interesting, Debbie! The purple really is pretty! Who knew so much went into making colored glass? Your bottles look great on the mantel!

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 12 at 6:25 pm

      It’s pretty amazing!

      Reply
  2. Gail @Purple Hues and Me says

    August 12 at 8:11 am

    Very informative, Debbie! Maybe purple has transformed my soul because it’s a feel good color and makes me happy!

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 12 at 6:25 pm

      Great Gail, hope you learned something new today!

      Reply
  3. Penny @ The Comforts of Home says

    August 12 at 8:52 am

    Your purple bottles are so pretty. I love your living room rug.

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 12 at 6:25 pm

      Thanks Penny, that came from Pottery barn {actually ebay} but it is is a pottery barn rug.

      Reply
  4. martina says

    August 12 at 9:00 am

    Very interesting and very pretty…amethyst/purple is my moms favorite color! Love the way the bottles look displayed on your mantel!

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 12 at 6:24 pm

      Thank you Martina!

      Reply
  5. Ann says

    August 12 at 9:00 am

    Purple was my daughter’s favorite color when she was little so it will always be near to my heart. I love vintage bottles too. I smiled when you mentioned your coffee table. When my kids were home, mine was a lost cause!

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 12 at 6:24 pm

      It’s still a mess lol!

      Reply
  6. Linda says

    August 12 at 1:47 pm

    I love the history noted to the purple bottles. I did not know any of this information. And I’ve never seen a purple bottle in person. I will have to look at yours next time I come. Now I will be looking for them I love purple. As you know my purple rocker on the porch and lots of other purple stuff

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 12 at 6:23 pm

      Can’t believe you never noticed they Mom!

      Reply
  7. Judith says

    August 12 at 7:31 pm

    Hello Debbie,

    Very interesting…….never knew about the purple bottles. Do you think this is the same way other colors are

    made?????

    Love your display….

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 12 at 8:29 pm

      I do believe so Judith!

      Reply
  8. Heather says

    August 13 at 7:43 am

    These are gorgeous! I’m going to look for some the next time I’m antiquing to see them in person! I love them with daisies in them and along your mantel!!

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 14 at 6:09 pm

      Thank you Heather! They are all over the place now in purple here at least.

      Reply
  9. Lisa Palmese says

    August 14 at 5:08 am

    This the was a brilliant blog post. I love when a post is very informative.I love all the beautiful purple glass you have shown and collected.I would love to see One done in the ritz dye.now I have to go down to River Street where the guy digs them up from the beach and he sells them really cheap. Lol Great Article Thank You. Lisa

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 14 at 6:09 pm

      Thanks Lisa! Yes they are going up in price I see. So if you can score them cheap, grab em!

      Reply
  10. Shannon says

    August 18 at 6:11 pm

    I used to have a purple bottle. Now I wonder what ever became of it. This is so interesting!

    Reply
    • debbiedoo's says

      August 18 at 9:31 pm

      So glad you learned something new Shannon!

      Reply
  11. lisa says

    July 18 at 7:38 pm

    interesting article!
    I was trying to find a value for my purple’ fishbowl’
    its large and beautiful….but looks like a fishbowl no matter what I do with it

    Reply
  12. TJ says

    May 29 at 10:18 am

    Thanks for the info. Many years back, I was in Wyoming’s Powder River Breaks, and found a dirty, calciym caked light purple, almost violet, glass bottle witg a threaded top. Put it into my pack, brought it home and mostly forgot about it until cleaning and downsizing.

    Appreciate the information on hiw it got the color it is.

    Reply

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