Flask 1820 - 1830

Curator: Here we have a black and white photograph of three glass flasks, attributed to the Keene Marlboro Street Glassworks. These date back to the period of 1820 to 1830. They’re currently held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Editor: Three ghostly siblings lined up for a family portrait. There’s something charming about these, even in black and white—like little transparent ghosts holding forgotten spirits! Curator: Flasks like these were common items in the early 19th century United States. Keene Marlboro was a significant glass producer and its flasks would have circulated widely. Notice the motifs molded into the glass. Each design served a different purpose. Editor: Yes, I see the variety in design! The first is more delicate and curvaceous—with that fluted fruit motif. The other two are almost blocky and solid. In one, is that a masonic emblem I see? What were these flasks intended for exactly? Medicine, liquors? Curator: Exactly! Many of these would have contained alcohol, like whiskey, and might have been brought to political rallies. Consider the third flask which depicts clasped hands, a symbol of unity, surrounded by stars, almost like an early proto-nationalistic symbol of America. Their survival offers insight into the popular imagery of the time and social customs surrounding alcohol consumption. They weren't precious objects; rather functional pieces shaped by daily use and popular iconography. Editor: It's amazing to consider they are everyday vessels carrying potent symbolism. So, something people probably threw around without a second thought now is speaking to us from a different dimension. It makes you think about what unassuming object today is charged with symbols and might someday communicate who we were as people. Curator: Precisely. Flasks offer tangible evidence of social drinking rituals, democratic engagement, and the emerging aesthetic vocabulary of a young nation, things that a simple glass photograph is unable to deliver. Editor: Very well said! I now regard them with a bit more reverence. Ghosts they may seem, but they still hold quite the social charge!