# unusual base?



## westKYdigger (Jul 16, 2019)

I have come across this base before, but don't know how the item was produced.
 
 It doesn't look like a pontil, it seems to be kind of swirled.  This happens to be the base of a decanter. 
 Any insight?  The items maybe from the 1920's


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## sandchip (Jul 16, 2019)

It's not a pontil scar.  The blowpipe was inserted into the batch of glass, rotated, withdrawn and snipped, or rotated until the gather separated from the batch.  In this case, the gather had just enough time to stiffen ever so slightly on the way to being inserted into the mold and that, coupled with the center of the base being the point where the gather is expanded the least as it was blown into the mold, resultied in a bit of a swirl left by rotating the blowpipe.  It's hard to describe so I hope all this makes some sense.


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## Ken_Riser (Jul 17, 2019)

westKYdigger said:


> I have come across this base before, but don't know how the item was produced.View attachment 189432
> It doesn't look like a pontil, it seems to be kind of swirled.View attachment 189433  This happens to be the base of a decanter.View attachment 189434
> Any insight?  The items maybe from the 1920's


I have a ponytail from hell can't find the dam bottles use anywhere it's small líke a big lab testube but the pintails at least 2 inches deep nice dark as heck green no.markings at all but pintails deepest I've ever seen no idea what bot was used for?


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## sandchip (Jul 17, 2019)

Just noticed, is there some writing etched on the front panel?


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## westKYdigger (Jul 17, 2019)

Sandchip, Thanks for the explanation.  Yes, that does make sense.  I wasn't sure if it was B-I-M, since the side seams go up & onto the bottom of the flare of the lip.
Etching is 'KUMMEL', a german liquor with anise & carraway seed flavor.  I've never had it & don't think I'ld like it.


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## sandchip (Jul 17, 2019)

It is indeed hand blown, or BIM.  Its shape reminds me of the rare Indigo Bitters that had enamel lettering in the panel, my reason for asking.  Pretty bottle, westKY.


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## westKYdigger (Jul 18, 2019)

Since it's hand blown, would that place it earlier than I thought, possibly to pre WW1?  I am leaning towards german in origin, Kummel is actually spelled with an umlaut (double dot) over the 'u'.


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## sandchip (Jul 19, 2019)

That's what I was thinking, 1890ish or so.  Sometimes hard to say on pieces like that though.


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## westKYdigger (Oct 16, 2019)

I found another decanter with the swirled base in Nashville a couple of weeks ago.  Why is it that when we get something interesting, but out of our collecting area, we start seeing that type of bottle everywhere?  This one is amethyst, but I don't think SCA.  Based on sandchip's explanation, I think this one is earlier than the Kummel decanter.


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