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Florida officers just lately introduced the discovery of two 18th-century “onion glasses” present in waters exterior of the Sunshine State.
The Florida Division of Historical Resources introduced the discover on Oct. 8 in a social media assertion about the bottles’ current restoration. In a Facebook put up, the division shared outdated footage of the barnacle-covered bottles, and newer footage of the restored artifacts. The put up credit “meticulously slow cleaning and drying,” for the profitable restoration.
“Peeling back the layers to these onions was surely a challenge!” the put up learn. “With meticulously slow cleaning and drying, the bottles remained intact and were then consolidated with Paraloid B-72, an acrylic resin based consolidant typically used in glass and ceramic conservation.”
Mark Ard, the Director of External Affairs of the Florida Department of State, instructed Fox News Digital that the bottles have been recovered from a shipwreck off the coast of Indian River County in 2021 and 2022.
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Florida officers introduced the current restoration of two distinctive bottles from the 1700s. (Florida Division of Historical Resources through Facebook)
“While the exact ship has not been identified, the vessel was part of the Spanish Plate Fleet that was sailing from Cuba bound for Spain in 1715,” Ard defined. “The 1715 Spanish Plate Fleet was lost at sea along Florida’s east coast after encountering a hurricane.”
Ard referred to as the bottles a “rare” intact discovery, and famous that the ingesting vessels have been empty after they have been discovered.
“It is presumed they contained some sort of alcoholic spirit,” the official defined.
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“These bottles are very fragile, and for them to first survive the destruction of the ship, and then being submerged underwater for over 300 years where they were subject to tidal forces, is incredible.”
The Florida official stated that the bottles have been possible produced in England. Each onion bottle is exclusive, Ard stated.
Conservators labored diligently to fastidiously restore the bottles and take away the barnacles on them. (Florida Division of Historical Resources through Facebook)
“Onion bottles are free-blown using a pontile. Each one is unique, so there is variation in size, shape and weight,” he described.
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“These were made by hand by skilled craftspeople,” Ard added. “Onion bottles would have been carried as cargo and would have also been used by crew and passengers onboard.”
The official additionally harassed how necessary the Spanish treasure fleet was to international maritime commerce in the 18th century.
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“The flow of goods and raw materials from Central and Southern America, and to a lesser extent Asia, was vital to the economies of not just the Kingdom of Spain but many other nations in Europe,” he stated. “Goods, such as chocolate that was onboard these ships, also fundamentally changed social habits that we still see today.”
“The Spanish mixed sugar with cacao to create drinking chocolate that was often served using specific porcelain vessels made in China that were also transported by the Plate Fleets.”
Ard instructed Fox News Digital that the bottles at the moment are out there for mortgage as a part of the Artifact Loan Program.
The “onion bottles” have been expertly crafted, and each has a novel form. (Florida Division of Historical Resources through Facebook)
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“In Florida, examples of onion bottles on loan from the Division are on exhibit at History Miami, the Pensacola Museum of History, and the McLarty Treasure Museum in Sebastian, Indian River County,” he defined.
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