Bottle seals or crests are one of the more intriguing categories of artifacts recovered from historic archaeological sites. These small blobs of glass were applied to the necks or shoulders of bottles. They were embossed with initials, shields, and other insignia. They bear dates, as well as the initials and names of individuals and families, taverns, vineyards, schools, retailers, and
IntroductionBottle seals or crests are among the more intriguing artifacts recovered from historical archaeological sites. Small blobs of glass, applied to the necks or shoulders of bottles, they were embossed with initials, shields, and other insignia. These seals bear dates, as well as initials and names. Some are private seals for individuals and families. Others were made for commercial operations, such as taverns, spas, and vineyards. Some glassworks even marked their wares. Institutions and organizations, including schools, dispensaries, and religious organizations, employed marked bottles. Archaeologists and collectors have used them as a tool to seriate handblown glass bottles (Leeds 1941;Hudson 1961; Noël Hume 1961; Davis 1972; Van den Bossche 2001: 30-31). Indeed, according to Olive Jones, sealed wine bottles were the "earliest English made bottles to be collected and studied in detail" (Jones 2010: 146). Sealed bottles have often been interpreted as status markers (Horna 2005;A. Smith 2007) and are also associated w i t h m a n n e r l y b e h a v i o r (Goodwin 1999: 133-140) and personal identity (White and Beaudry 2009: 218-219). They also indicated ownership and may have served to deter would-be bottle thieves (Buckley 1931: 191). Finally, when employed by vineyards and taverns, they could serve as advertisements (Wicks 1998: 3).This article provides a preliminary catalog of archaeologically recovered bottle seals from northeastern North America and argues that private bottle seals, the type employed by individuals, served not only as indicators of economic capital, but also as indices of social and cultural capital reflecting membership in elite, often male, groups and knowledge of proper etiquette and behavior. These simple seals provide archaeologists with a window into life in colonial America and the aspirations and behaviors of, and connections between the owners of sealed bottles. The seals also provide insights into the regional cultures that were once present in colonial America.This paper focuses on bottle seals from the northeastern United States and adjacent portions of Canada ( fig. 3) All the resulting information was compiled in a single database for ease of organization (appendix). A total of 651 seals were identified. More certainly exist. Bottles in museum collections, other than those from archaeological assemblages, were generally not included in this spreadsheet, as many lack clear provenience information. Given the large number of seals from Maryland and Virginia, we do not believe that our list of seals is comprehensive; however, we do believe that it is substantial enough to begin drawin...