Not currently on display at the V&A

Bottle Ticket

1898-1899 (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 word 'Irish' on this silver ticket probably refers to Irish whiskey. 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.

These tickets also illustrate in miniature the skills of the silversmith over the last two hundred years. While the variety of styles and materials was enormous, silver bottle tickets tended to reflect the designs and technical advances in metalware generally.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Silver
Brief description
Silver, London hallmarks for 1898-9, mark of Holland, Aldwinkle and Slater.
Physical description
Bottle ticket with the word IRISH. Silver, fancy escutcheon with repousse border of vines, scrolls and a shell; chain attached.
Dimensions
  • Height: 1.5in
  • Length: 2.25in
Marks and inscriptions
  • Mark of Holland, Aldwinkle and Slater.
  • London hallmarks for 1898-9
  • IRISH
Credit line
P. J. Cropper Bequest
Subjects depicted
Summary
Bottle tickets identified the contents of a bottle or decanter, which might alternatively contain spirits, sauces, toilet waters or cordials. The word 'Irish' on this silver ticket probably refers to Irish whiskey. 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.

These tickets also illustrate in miniature the skills of the silversmith over the last two hundred years. While the variety of styles and materials was enormous, silver bottle tickets tended to reflect the designs and technical advances in metalware generally.
Collection
Accession number
M.647-1944

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Record createdFebruary 16, 2005
Record URL
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