/r/BottleDigging
From discovery to identification, here is anything related to the hobby of collecting antique bottles or glass. We welcome our users to post photos of their finds, ask questions and share stories about bottle digging. Whether your collection was found in a traditional dump, on the surface, under water, purchased, or passed down through generations- we want to see them!
New to Bottle Digging?
General Ethics: DO NOT excavate historical sites or national parks. It is illegal to do so. Get permission for private property. Take photographs. These dump sites are time capsules and contain artifacts of historical importance. Larn how to carefully excavate artifacts. Fill all holes. Excavating privies can be dangerous and should only be attemped by skilled diggers. They are deep and unstable pits which can collapse. There's safety in numbers so bring a friend and have a phone handy in case of emergencies.
Welcome!
Here we talk about maps, finding old homesteads, digging up bottles, excavating privies, glass manufacturers, and anything related to the hobby of bottle digging. Its also the place to discuss antique glass, so please feel free to share your dig photos as well as get help with bottle identification.
Some resources for Identification
- Historic Bottle Identification Website
- Glass Bottle Marks
- Hutchinson Soda Identification
- Antique Medicines
Resources for Historic Maps
Alot of very useful information pertaining to the location of homesteads can be found in old maps
Blogs, Forums and Misc.
- Dump Diggers He has lots of informative blogs, in particular, this post about finding old dump sites
- Rare Bottles For Sale
- AntiqueBottles.net Forum
- Digger Odell's site A Wealth of information about rarity and value from the late Digger Odell
Related Subreddits
/r/BottleDigging
33,451 Subscribers
Found my first intact clay pipe!!
01:15 UTC
Any info?
23:59 UTC
Any clue what I’ve got?
21:56 UTC
Big job
Time for a huge job to label and tag all my bottles with where they were dug and label them the (part of the HUGHES collection) This one was found last year in the sir nelson wine cellar in wales
20:14 UTC
Lucky area beachcombing
Just wandering along the beach and I found an area that looked like someone had air dropped a bloody toilet on it, so many chunks of it everywhere. But then nearby there were there lovely bottles and a stupid number of meat pastes. What would the milk glass bottle/jar be for?
17:49 UTC
Bottle dig and more
Todays barn find turned up an old home door found in the top, most of the houses in this are were built in the 20’s to 40’s. Posting this in the vintage community…
16:39 UTC
How many bottles would y’all say are in y’all’s collection?
I’ve been asked a few times by people how many bottles do I think I have. So If yall had to guess how many do y’all have.
I did end up counting and came up with 325, plus 21 insulators and 2 stoneware pieces. Though I have a red cabinet that I have bottles in that I did not count because there’s way to many in there, so I’d say my count is closer to 400+
14:13 UTC
Got this when I was digging awhile ago, really looks cool I like this type of bottle
14:05 UTC
Dug up my first decorated lid yesterday
11:50 UTC
Absolutely gargantuan dump
Man this dump went on for MILES
01:41 UTC
What do the numbers around the top of soda bottles mean?
01:06 UTC
9 hutch day!
Hey all, new video is up. Best day bottle digging so far. Enjoy!
23:17 UTC
The closest I’ve gotten to an intact hutch! Hopefully I find a a whole one eventually
21:48 UTC
Morning barn dig
15:10 UTC
Shreveport hutch bottles
I’ve gotten these over the years. The one on the right appears to have the stopper still in the bottle. I bought the one on the left for a steal, got it for $10, though somebody had been in before me and dropped it, broke half of the lip off.
13:28 UTC