# can anybody get me close on dating these jars



## wvheadhunter (Apr 15, 2020)

Dates?


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## coreya (Apr 15, 2020)

The first one (clear) looks 70's or so but hard to tell without seeing the base. the Ball Ideal looks like a #202-5 in the Red Book which would date it to the 1915-1923 range.


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## wvheadhunter (Apr 15, 2020)

coreya said:


> The first one (clear) looks 70's or so but hard to tell without seeing the base. the Ball Ideal looks like a #202-5 in the Red Book which would date it to the 1915-1923 range.


I will get better pics later of them both, they were found right next to each other in the same layer. Thank you for your reply


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## jarsnstuff (Apr 15, 2020)

The Ball Ideal could easily have been in use up to the 1970s.  Ball made rubbers for canning with glass & zinc lids up to the early 1970s, so the jar would not have been obsolete before then.  That would explain why both jars might be found in the same layer.


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## treeguyfred (Apr 15, 2020)

There is a manner of dating Balls by closely examining the script, ie: the L loops, the underscore, the style of the a and etc... but thats not in my area of expertise. I believe recent printings of the Red Book has a section regarding that. There was also a feature called Granny Kath's kitchen that used to focus on canning Jars in the Bottle magazine Antique Bottles and Glass - Best of luck in your search!
~Fred


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## jarsnstuff (Apr 16, 2020)

"There is a manner of dating Balls by closely examining the script, ie: the L loops, the underscore, the style of the a and etc."

I believe this is the chart treeguyfred was referring to.


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## MEDIC-372 (Apr 17, 2020)

Here's a good site for Ball Jars... looks to be 1910-20's or so.









						How to Date Old Ball Mason Jars (with Pictures) - wikiHow
					

Ball mason jars are a type of home canning jar made by the Ball Corporation. The company started making mason jars back in 1880, and many people today still use these for canning, or collect the jars as a hobby. There are many ways to date...




					www.wikihow.com


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## coreya (Apr 17, 2020)

perhaps I wasn't clear as to date of the Ball Ideal? That style (model) was made between 1915 and were discontinued in 1923. There is no way to narrow down that date any closer as far as I know.


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## treeguyfred (Apr 18, 2020)

coreya said:


> perhaps I wasn't clear as to date of the Ball Ideal? That style (model) was made between 1915 and were discontinued in 1923. There is no way to narrow down that date any closer as far as I know.


Great info, I'm certainly not a jar guru. 
~Fred


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