Absinthe Glass.

This bistro “Swirl” glass is one of the archetypal absinthe glasses of the era. Heavy, hand-blown glass, these were the standard café and bistro glasses and were used for absinthe as well as other drinks. The swirl design acts as a mark for measuring the dose of absinthe. Glasses of this type remained in use during the 1920's and 30's, but earlier examples can be recognized by their prominent pontil marks and slightly irregular design, a sign that they were hand-blown, rather than machine molded.

A pontil mark is a type of scar left on the base of a glass by a pontil rod. The rod held the glass during the steps in the glass blowing process where the blowpipe is removed from the glass. Once the glass is "finished", the pontil rod is sharply tapped which breaks it free of the glass. The base of a glass which was held with a pontil rod will almost always retain some evidence of the pontil rod attachment, the hallmark of hand-blown glass.

These particular glasses came out of The Café des Promenades in Tonnerre, established in 1880. It was locked and untouched for 41 years until the key was turned in January, 2009. France, Ca. 1890 – 1915.

Swirl Absinthe glass (No. C550). Dimensions: 6"H. Shipping: included.