Posted 8 years ago
SpiritBear
(813 items)
I could find two references to Biermann in Chicago pertaining to pharmacists. There was a Clifford J. Biermann at 1142 E. 55th and a William H. Biermann at 1610 W. Chicago Ave.
References for both in 1907 and 1921 (brothers, perhaps). Both fit the age-range of the bottle (Blue Ribbon, the maker, was a mark from 1907 - 1933).
I could not find the name of either pharmacy, as they were listed only as registered pharmacists.
Bottle style typical of 1905 to late 1920s. This one should be 1910s.
The bottle has a slight lavender tint, often called SCA by collectors. SCA, or Sun-Coloured Amethyst, comes in shades from light lavender to pink to dark purple (dark purple is irradiated by people, not the sun; don't ever be fooled by that "rare" colour).
The longer the sun's radiation (it does penetrate the ground) gets to the bottle (and by longer, I mean long periods of time, and great exposure) the darker the colour to a point.
Manganese in the glass is the culprit; it was originally added to help make flint (clear) glass, but the ACA became its side-effect.
WW1 mostly stopped our supply of manganese for glass-making, so by 1920 SCA glass pretty much cuts off. Some milk bottles up till the '40s exhibit a slight tint, though, in my experience.
As a note of interest, one can 'un-do' the 'damage' done by artificially irradiated bottles (those dark purple ones). I think it has to be 320-degree F. heat (don't quote me) for a while. Sellers (liars) then pass off the 'new' colour (which has a slight tan tint to it) as yet another rare colour. The buyer then sells it as the same, not knowing it was done in the last 30 years.
Other colours, due to materials in the glass, can be achieved. The purpling is just the most commonly seen.
