Posted 13 years ago
RedMole2011
(5 items)
After selling all our junk in a car boot sale I was going through what was left over and found this in amongst all our glass ware, I didnt even notice there was a silver spoon attached to the stopper.
We think it's an opium bottle, the spoon is hallmarked for 1823.
Look at the bottle stopper, would you be in agreement with us that it resembles the cap on a poppy seed pod, or are we just hallucinating ??
Hi from Sydney, Australia!
Is the mark English? Is there a maker's mark as well? I have never seen one before.
The form of the stopper is quite normal for English Georgian glass, but it is called a "mushroom" stopper!
Thanks for sharing this amazing item!
I've just posted a pic of the hallmark
A similar bottle appeared on a UK TV antiques programme last week - it is a Victorian snuff bottle - the little spoon is for shovelling up snuff.
Hi RedMole and daisymay!
I was wondering which antiques show to look out for?
In Australia we see some ( but not all ) of the English and US shows.
The makers mark is for a very well known London silversmith firm whose origins go back to 1791, when John Lias began in business as a buckle-maker. In 1818 he took as his partner his son Henry Lias I and they were joined from 1823 to 1837 by another son, Charles. Henry Lias I and his son Henry Lias II were partners from 1850. In 1879 Henry Lias II formed a firm with James Wakely. In 1884 the firm consisted of James Wakely and Frank Wheeler, becoming Wakely & Wheeler in 1909. In 1957 the business was acquired by Padgett & Braham Ltd.
Hi Vetraio50 - the show I saw was called Antiques Master on British TV BBC2 - it's a programme where knowledgeable amateurs compete against each other in specialist then general categories, adjudicated by a professional antiques expert - it's good fun and you learn a lot. Also Antiques Roadshow on BBC1.
Many thanks. We don't see it here yet. Sounds very interesting!
I found a similar little bottle. Not so fancy and no stopper, but I think they may be used the same.
I know this post is quite old now, but the bottle shown is a snuff bottle, not for Opium. It is English made and the spoon was for getting the correct amount of snuff (about a pinch) and held to the nose for inhaling.
Old opium paraphernalia is quite uncommon in England. Most of the authentic antique pieces found in Europe are from France and the Netherlands. Victorian London's reputation as a centre of opium smoking is based on literary fiction rather than historical fact. The London press, along with popular British authors of the day, were fond of portraying London's Limehouse district as an opium-drenched pit of danger and mystery. The Chinese migrants, who mostly brought opium and opium dens to Europe and America, never exceeded the low hundreds in London, in large contrast to the tens of thousands of Chinese who settled in North American Chinatowns. In 1891, the Census recorded 582 Chinese-born residents in Britain, though this dropped to 387 in 1896. As thus, Opium dens in London were a bit of a rarity and it’s usage not widespread.