I found these two great bottles on Sunday in a small bay not far from Dockyard...the free blown squat cylinder is in perfect condition and I found it mostly buried, just the neck was partly exposed...it dates to the late 1700s, the other bottle is a nice aqua coloured Minard's Linament 'cure all' that dates to about the 1880s and is one of my favorite type of medicine bottle to find. Both bottles were found at approximately 25' deep and the water temperature was 65 F and only getting warmer from now on.

Here are some finds that Jake & I made yesterday...lots of old blob top beer bottles and 3 part moulded wine bottles from the 1840s - 1890s, a nice aqua coloured medicine type bottle and a beautiful intact porcelain plate from around the 1870s

A tip from a friend led me to go for a dive in Davis Pond...it is quite well hidden and fed from the north shore through an under ground cave system...the tip proved to be correct as we found quite a few nice old bottles after exploring the whole area. There is lots of large pottery shards and old bottles located mainly in one section of the pond...due to limited time I didn't do much digging but just picked up what I could find exposed...I'm sure there is lots of nice pieces buried in the soft sandy bottom

Here's a nice Carter's cone ink I found yesterday near Red Hole at about 20' deep. I know that William Carter first started his ink business in 1858 in Boston and it soon became very successful. This bottle dates to around the 1880s...I've found quite a few in the past in different shades of amber, aqua and green but this is the first black glass one I've found

Here are some recent finds from the southern side of Hamilton Harbour, a couple of medicine bottles - one with the cork still in place, a small milk or cream bottle, a really nice black glass squat cylinder from about 1780, a teal blue glass telephone pole insulator - I've found quite a few of these over the years but have always left them in the water, but now I think I'll start keeping them as they do seem to come in quite a few different colours - they were used in the late 1800s to early 1900s, I also found a pile of large coal pieces...probably used as fuel for the old steamships that used to visit here

I went out diving with Jake this past weekend and these are some of his great finds after just being brought up from the deep...a nice stoneware bottle, an early coffin shaped flask, and he also found an incredible intact black glass jar that unfortunately fell apart while bringing it to the surface...the remnants are shown and it likely dated to the late 1700s

Here are some nice old bottles found today while diving near Somerset, four black glass bottles - the second from the left is free blown and from around 1805 the other three are later - 1830s and blown in the Rickett's 3 part mould, also shown is an aqua coloured sauce bottle, a very crude looking old glass jar embossed D. Bumsted  Co. Royal British Table Salt...and some colourful pottery shards

Here's a beautiful intact stoneware jug I found while doing a long dive into Great Sound...I found it at about 35' deep and it was partially buried...very happy with that find! On the way back, in shallower water I found the 'three in one oil' bottle and a few other pieces

Very nice start to the New Year with this find...a rare 'Congress Water' bottle found today in Pruddens Bay...on the other side of the bottle is embossed 'Congress & Empire Spring Co. Saratoga NY'. This mineral spring water bottle is from the famous Saratoga Springs near Albany NY. I found the bottle at a depth of 15' wedged between some rocks...and it has probably been laying in the same spot since the 1880s.

I went for a quick dive today in Pruddens Bay right below where the ferry pulls in and where her prop has swept the bottom of silt...all of these finds were exposed except for the marble bottle which was almost completely buried, but still easy to spot. I really like the teal blue fairy light and today was an appropriate time to find it as they were often used during Victorian times with a candle or oil to light Christmas trees

These are some finds from last weekend...two small burst top bottles and a nice aqua coloured 'Bakers Flavouring Extract' bottle...buried quite deep was the remains of an old pewter goblet...not sure exactly how old it is but I found it in the water near a house from the early 1700s which gives some indication of age...also lots of very old bottle & pottery fragments

Some nice old bottles found today in the stretch of water by Crow Lane...all were buried in the sand and date from the mid to late 1800s.

Here are some really nice old bottles that Grant found today while we were diving near Hamilton Harbour... the three embossed medicine bottles were buried about 10" down and the beautiful old 'burst top' inkwell was found laying exposed on top of the sand....all date from the mid to late 1800s. This is a pretty good spot so we'll be heading back next weekend to see what else can be found

I was doing some work near Hinson's Island today and after I finished I went and had a look around and found these two nice old bottles laying in the sand....a fully intact Gosling Bros. marble/torpedo bottle and a nice olive oil bottle...both date to the late 1800s

Here is a very crude free blown bottle that I found yesterday. It has an uneven applied lip and a high kick up base with a rough glass pontil mark..it looks to be an old milk bottle from the early1800s, possibly even late 1700s

Some other pieces found recently while looking for old bottles...silver, brass and pewter cutlery from the 1600s and 1700s...westerwald pottery shards from the 1700s, horse teeth, bronze ship spikes and a beautiful seahorse who was cast high ashore after a serious storm and could not make it back to sea.

Here are a few bottles that I found recently in a small Bay near Somerset Bridge...the tall black glass bottle (3 part mould) dates to the 1860s and has some beautiful iridescence and a piece of coral attached, the dark amber bottle dates to the late 1800s and is embossed 'Mulford's Pre-Digested Beef', a small amber medicine bottle and two amber glass bottle tops

Kimberly found this nice old half size rum or wine bottle not too long ago while diving in St. George's, she also found the broken marble bottle which is nicely embossed Albert Inglis, St. George's...the neck was more than likely broken to get the marble out over 125 years ago. Albert Inglis owned a store on Water Street, St. George's as far back as the 1880s and sold  "Aerated Waters and Plain Soda, Lemonade and Ginger Ale in Codd's Patent Globe Stopper Bottles"

Here are some beautiful old pottery shards that Kimberly found when we went diving near Hinson's Island about a week ago...they look to be from around the late 1800s and were found at a depth of   15 - 20'  just laying in the  sand

This is what remains of a nice old onion bottle I found the other day. It was buried about 15" below the sand in a trench I was fanning away at...the base and neck are still intact but what remained of the body of the bottle disintegrated as soon as I tried to move it...the medicine bottles and pottery shard were found in the same trench but only just a few inches below the sand level. The onion bottle dates to the end of the 1600s and the medicine bottles from the mid to late 1800s. 

Here are some more old bottles that Jason found while diving along the shorelines during a visit this summer...all great finds especially the round bottom soda bottle embossed 'MST Somerset'...quite rare these days

I found this nice case gin bottle while diving amongst the mangroves in Heron Bay a few days ago...the visibility was pretty bad and most of the bottles I found were by feel....definitely some more good stuff there. This 'case gin' dates to the early 1800s. It's been awhile since I found one in such good condition...so will be going back to the same area soon to look for more!

 

Jason, who is a frequent visitor to Bermuda sent me these pictures of some of the great finds he made on his  recent visit to the Island...he also sent the following  note: 

 "Diving in Bermuda for old bottles and such is a great way to spend a day, week and for me, a month. This July, I had the great fortune of getting away from my job in the states (New Jersey) and diving almost everyday for items lost by Bermuda generations of the last 200 years. Some places I can just snorkel, some I free dive and some I Scuba, all depending on sites & tides. Glass, brass, cooper, silver & gold all are effected differently by Bermuda's high salt content so bottles surely can last a thousand of years if locked under a rock while coins get stripped of their surface much quicker.

The wonderful finds this summer ranged from a 1910 GEENS fishing lure to a 1700's silver mug...but the bottles still give me the biggest rush."

A nice bottle diving session resulted in uncovering these 3 old bottles not too far out from the shoreline in Warwick....a beautiful and not often seen honey amber coloured medicine bottle, a rare small torpedo bottle embossed J.H. Cuff Manchester Established 1801 and a nice aqua burst top medicine...all were buried at least 6" in the sand  at 15' - 20' deep and date to around the 1870s

Here's a tiny cobalt blue poison bottle I found recently...it just fell out of the side of a trench I was fanning away at...it's definitely one of the smallest bottles I've ever found, especially in such a nice colour...to give it some scale...the shard beside it, is the neck and lip of a very old case gin bottle

Here's a really nice 'burst top' inkwell that was found in Salt Kettle a couple of days ago, it dates to the late 1800s...almost looks like I plucked it from the morning glory vine !

Not far from the location of the old Heron Bay Inn which dated back to early days...these bottles were found. The water was extremely murky but was able to make a few nice finds, mostly by feel...lots of mangroves and the bottom was soft and mucky. Still soaking is a beautiful but damaged onion bottle which dates to the early 1700s, I found it buried about 2 ft  down and it is in delicate condition...plus some other nice old black glass bottles, early1800s and an amber coloured bitters bottle which dates a little later, 1880s...I made some more finds but these are definitely the best. I was there for about 2 hrs in 10 ft of water and fanned a large trench about 10 ft. across and 2 ft. deep. Best to wear full gear in this area as the conditions are not pleasant...but the rewards are good!

Here's a flattened musket ball that must have struck something pretty hard...also some other musket balls, an awesome shell whose inhabitant had long since departed and a nice neck from a very early onion bottle that dates to the late 1600s...all were found diving not far from shore in Ely's Harbour

Here's a nice grouping of some Bovril bottles that I dove up recently. The bottle's distinctive shape has been their trademark since 1870 - present...these particular bottles date from 1880s to about 1920. Bovril is a beef extract that was used many different ways and even as a fortifying tea, it was first used by British soldiers and was nicknamed 'war food'

Some great finds today from a nice little cove in Harrington Sound, lots of pottery shards, old bovril bottles, medicine and linament bottles...all date from the mid 1800s and were found at a depth of 20' in some nice warm water...perfect temperature right now

Some nice bottles and shards found today not far from Hodson's Ferry, they all date to the late 1800s and were buried just a few inches under the sand.

Here's a really nice cobalt ribbed poison bottle I found today...it was buried about 4" down  in the sand and I found a few other old bottles in the same area but this was definitely the best one...it dates to the late 1800s

Here's a beautiful little treasure that Alicia found while visiting Bermuda, she was snorkeling just north of Commissioner's House in the Royal Naval Dockyard and found it in 5' of water. It appears to be the top of a very old jug...probably used for rum, and dates to about the mid 1800s...very nice find!!

Here is the 'dead eye' I found a few weeks ago after some restoration...the marble bottle and the torpedo-marble bottle I found yesterday in a shallow bay near Somerset, the black glass bottle and clay pipes were found nearby not too long ago...all vary in age from the 1860s - 1890s

Went out on a quick dive this evening with Grant...we swam over to White's Island and after a little digging these are three of the bottles we found...an early 3 part moulded black glass bottle, a beautiful small stoneware jar and a nice ink bottle...they are all from about the same time period and date from 1830s - 1850s

Here are some recent finds: the two jars ca. 1880s were found near Dockyard, the aqua medicine 'for the skin and hair' was found on a quick dive along the Harbour Rd. area and dates to the 1870s, I found the free-blown squat cylinder in the middle of the Harbour at about 35' deep...beautiful bottle and dates to the very early 1800s

Went out diving near White's Island again and we found these bottles and pieces of an old shipwreck...there was this old 'deadeye' made from lignum vitae and quite a few small pieces of what appear to be decking - in the lower left you can see a piece of wood with a bent 8" brass or copper spike through it. I have read that in 1880 there was a whaling barque 'Perry' that was wrecked and broke up against White's Island in a fierce hurricane...maybe these are part of it...will keep looking and see what else turns up

Here's a nice selection of some recent finds from my last two dives...nine aqua coloured bottles in a variety of shapes and sizes dating from 1840s - 1890s, the multi sided bottle on the right has a very rough broken pontil mark, also shown are a few colourful pottery and bottle shards

Here's what appears to be the exploded barrel of a blunderbuss pistol after some cleaning...solid bronze and heavy...wow!! Too much powder and shot will apparently cause this to happen...very cool find. This gun was used to clear decks while boarding a vessel during the days of privateering!

Here are some finds from today, 3 tall black glass wine bottles, a beautiful old stoneware ginger beer bottle, some medicines and loads of colourful pottery shards...the bronze piece in the front looks to me like the exploded barrel of a blunderbuss...I'm going to clean it up and see how it looks

Here is a beautiful early black glass bottle that dates to around 1820s, free blown and in perfect condition. Didn't have to clean it all...it was buried up side down in the sand... just a bit of the base and side where the coral is...was exposed. Found in the Harbour a few days ago, not far from White's Island...25' deep

Here are three of the black glass bottles ca. 1840s found yesterday, after cleaning them up a little they look quite nice!

Went out diving with Grant today and we tried out a new spot near White's Island. We found lots of black glass bottles from the 1840s, a nice round bottom soda bottle, a clay inkwell and a few others...pretty good area and worth going back to do some digging

The Barque Dorothea in her early years...she was built in Hamburg Germany 1870 as a cargo vessel...this early photo was taken in the 1880s in the waters of Riga. Her last owner from 1902 - 1913 was evidently C. Lundgren from Loviisa Finland

The Dorothea adrift off Bermuda in January 1913...she had run into a terrible winter storm and did not survive it, the photo was taken from the derelict destroyer SS Seneca (this photo is courtesy of the Maritime Museum of Loviisa Finland)

This is an early picture of when I just found the Bell of the Dorothea while diving for old bottles...later research revealed that she was sighted adrift off of Bermuda in 1913 by the SS Bermudian...dismasted and completely awash...crew never heard from again...she was towed to St Georges Bermuda by the derelict destroyer SS Seneca

This is the Bell of the Dorothea after months of restoration.

Yesterday I was working on the bottom of a boat moored near White's Island, after I finished, I dropped down to the bottom to see what was around and found this nice old marmalade jar right away. It was almost completely buried...just a bit of the writing exposed. It dates to around the 1890s

This is a nice old clay pipe...the last time someone smoked from it was about 200 years ago...having been underwater for so long in the Harbour, it has stayed in remarkably great condition