Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Silver, Room 67, The Whiteley Galleries

Bottle Ticket

ca. 1850-1875 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The history of bottle tickets provides a fascinating insight into English eating, drinking and personal habits. 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. Their function was to identify the contents of a bottle or decanter, which might alternatively contain spirits, sauces, toilet waters or cordials. These tickets also illustrate in miniature, the skills of the silversmith over the last two hundred years. While the variety of styles and materials were enormous, silver bottle tickets tended to reflect fashionable designs in metalware generally. Makers were quick to adapt the many technical advances of the 18th and 19th centuries.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Electroplated nickel silver, pierced and engraved
Brief description
Electroplate, England ca.1850-75
Physical description
Bottle ticket with the word "PORT" Electroplated nickel silver, engraved and pierced in the form of a barrel surmounted and flanked by vine branches; chain attached.
Dimensions
  • Length: 5.8cm
  • Width: 5.2cm
Marks and inscriptions
  • No marks
  • PORT
Credit line
P. J. Cropper Bequest
Object history
Acquisition RF: 44 / 177
Bequest - P.J. Cropper
per W J Sheldrick
Subjects depicted
Summary
The history of bottle tickets provides a fascinating insight into English eating, drinking and personal habits. 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. Their function was to identify the contents of a bottle or decanter, which might alternatively contain spirits, sauces, toilet waters or cordials. These tickets also illustrate in miniature, the skills of the silversmith over the last two hundred years. While the variety of styles and materials were enormous, silver bottle tickets tended to reflect fashionable designs in metalware generally. Makers were quick to adapt the many technical advances of the 18th and 19th centuries.
Collection
Accession number
M.1093-1944

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Record createdMarch 3, 2004
Record URL
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