Description: Sparkling mint example of Dr Wistars Balsam. The history of Wistars Balsam of Wild Cherry is complex. The first ad which can be found is from Chambersburg, PA, a newspaper ad dated 1841. The medicinal value of the resin gathered from the Balsam of trees of South and Central America was so well known in the 1500’s, that Pope Pio IV pronounced it a sacrilege to destroy or injure the trees that produce the resin. In the early 1800’s New England newspapers advertised the arrival of cargo vessels which listed Balsam among cargo items (Courtesy Betty Blasi –A Bit About Balsams).
Circa 1840, Henry Wister developed a nostrum, Dr. Wistar’s Balsam of Wild Cherry, a heady mélange of cherry bark, alcohol and opiates. Sales were enormous. Dr. Wistar’s Balsam of Wild Cherry was on the market for over 100 years. Its bottles- made long after the Wistarburgh glassblowers last fired the furnace near the dawn of the Revolutionary War- remain highly prized by glass collectors.
Embossed: DR WISTARS // BALSAM OF // WILD CHERRY // PHILADA // IB.
Height: 6.5”
Color: Aqua
Condition: Great example, strong embossing, sparkling glass, applied tapered lip. Sharp open pontil. Edge above Dr Wistars is rough to the tough (manufactuered) thick glass – crude.
Price: SOLD
Item No. 286
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