Not currently on display at the V&A

Bottle Ticket

ca. 1850 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Bottle tickets identified the contents of a bottle or decanter, which might alternatively contain spirits, sauces, toilet waters or cordials. The variety of styles and materials was enormous. This example is one of a set of 12 made of porcelain with gilt lettering. The word claret probably refers to the English name for a red wine from the Bordeaux region of south-west France.

Contemporary gazettes begin to refer to ‘labels for bottles’ in the 1770s but it was not until the 1790s that they were established as wine or decanter labels. Silver bottle tickets tended to reflect fashionable designs and technical advances in metalware generally. During the period 1800-1900, English and French manufacturers also began to supply bottle tickets made in decorated ceramics.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Porcelain with gilt lettering
Brief description
Porcelain, England, ca.1850
Physical description
Bottle ticket (one of set of twelve) with the words CLARET. White porcelain escutcheon with borders of gilt rococo scrolls, gilt lettering and chain attached.
Dimensions
  • Length: 4.9cm
  • Width: 4.8cm
Marks and inscriptions
  • No marks
  • CLARET
Credit line
P. J. Cropper Bequest
Object history
Acquisition RF: 44 / 177
Bequest - P.J. Cropper
per W J Sheldrick
Probably wine.
Subject depicted
Summary
Bottle tickets identified the contents of a bottle or decanter, which might alternatively contain spirits, sauces, toilet waters or cordials. The variety of styles and materials was enormous. This example is one of a set of 12 made of porcelain with gilt lettering. The word claret probably refers to the English name for a red wine from the Bordeaux region of south-west France.

Contemporary gazettes begin to refer to ‘labels for bottles’ in the 1770s but it was not until the 1790s that they were established as wine or decanter labels. Silver bottle tickets tended to reflect fashionable designs and technical advances in metalware generally. During the period 1800-1900, English and French manufacturers also began to supply bottle tickets made in decorated ceramics.
Associated objects
Collection
Accession number
M.1554-1944

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Record createdJanuary 25, 2005
Record URL
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