Antique Spirit Barrel in Hand Decorated Amethyst Glass
A spirit barrel is a liquor or wine decanter. Back in the late 1800’s to early 1900’s executives would sit in their dusky, smokey offices and pour themselves and clients libations from spirit barrel decanters such as this. They were also used at weddings and other celebrations.
Beautiful dark amethyst glass was hand-blown from an optic mold, creating horizontal panels within the glass. The glass was hand decorated with millions of tiny beads, enamel and real gold paint. The metal bands at the ends of the barrel and the working spigot are pewter. The decor is in very good condition with some very slight wear to the gold. The enamel and beading are 100% perfect.
The glass is in near perfect condition with ‘bottom-wear’ type scratches on the vertical bands which rest upon the wooden stand. The wear marks are not invisible unless studied closely. The original stopper has a gold paint cap with about 50% of the gold remaining. Clean inside, no residue. Overall condition for this 100+ year old spirit barrel is very good++. There are no chips or chiggers.
Looks like it will hold a full bottle of liquor. The spirit barrel measures 10″ long, 8″ tall, 6″ at widest with a girth of 18″. The stand is made of stained oak and pine and was not included with the measurements above.
Made in Czechoslovakia by hand, circa 1890 to 1910.
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