I am hoping you are able to cast some light on my mystery Ball jar. The bubbly appearance of the glass is reminiscent of some glass decor items that have been imported to the US from such countries as Mexico, Spain and China. This one sold for a whopping $2,499 on Ebay. Many of them have quite lightly-embossed lettering. Some variants have vertical raised lines (ribs or grips) along the sides, added to assist in handling the jars while they are wet. Most home canners would have paid little or no attention to the markings in the first place. #9 on the bottom. WebThese antique Mason jars have traditionally been used for a host of different purposes, ranging from pickling food to arts and crafts designs. and E-Z Seal by Atlas at $60. Just by the general look of your jar, I would guess it dates from sometime in the mid-1870s into the early 1890s, but that is just my guess. I really appreciate your post on the site! David. In the same way, a mold number (0-15) underneath the jar is meaningless. were made, and these jars have been used by home canners throughout much of the 20th century. Diamond-I mark on bottom of amber bottle made by Illinois Glass Company. We believe that, whether it's how we shop, eat, and clean, the smallest changes can make a world of difference. The RED BOOK Lists thousands of variations. Care & Cleaning: Dishwasher-Safe. Hi Natasha, (See this mark illustrated in the U listings of he alphabetical bottle mark listings on this site). William Franzen & Sons- W F & S MIL marking on base of amber beer bottle. I shouldve gotten them! Check for identifying words. At the present time (2021) I havent seen any in Half-Gallon size, although perhaps they will eventually be made in that size as well. The bottom of the jar has the mold number A-3 on it. The notation in the book also reads MAKER UNKNOWN so I cant say what glass company would have made it. It certainly is from the zinc lid era and the threads on the top are spaced such that all commercially-made-for-market tin lids I have ever seen would be more closely spaced. There are various shades and tints of these colors out there. The Ball brothers, Frank and Ed, developed a semi-automatic process for the manufacture of fruit jars, which greatly increased the number of jars on the market and led to Ball jars becoming synonymous with the term fruit jars, much like Kleenex became for tissue.. Last Updated: August 17, 2022 Is this true? Sounds like the type made circa 1923-1933. Many slight variations in lettering style, glass color, base markings, etc., exist, and this particular type of jar presents a wide field of study for fruit jar collectors, glass historians and even those interested in vintage Americana in general. And the older the vintage mason jars are, the more valuable they are overall. Enjoy access to my private Member Library, including price guides, printables & tutorials.Read my Privacy PolicyHERE. I have a Ball Perfect Mason jar that is different from all others I have seen. $10-12.00, Aqua Ball Hi, I have 2 pale blue jars. Best regards, Im afraid I dont know a lot about the minor variants of those Grid jars. All you need to do is wash them carefully by hand with warm water and soap and then soak them for half an hour if need be. I see lots of prices so am curious as to value. We need each other to live better--be it by taking the time to connect with our communities or supporting small businesses. The catalog number in the Redbook guide assigned to that style of jar is #2712. I dont see anything oabout numbers on the front of jars. Reminiscent of the early 1900s, the Ball lightning jars were flint glass containers. Your guess is as good as mine! Ideal: These were made between 1915 and 1962. Best regards, David. What Ball jars are worth money? According to Country Living, an upside-down Ball canning jar designed to rest on its lid is relatively rare and made between 1900 and 1910. It's valued at about $1,000. Country Living also notes that a unique 1858 design, called the Willoughby Stopple, is especially valuable because it proved to be defective. In the 1800s, the cork stopper was the widespread bottle closure. Thank you for your interest, understanding and support! Can you provide me with a little history on this jar? I dont have all of the very latest editions of these books and had not perused them closely to see if we could narrow down the date range for the jar. (433) $35.00 FREE shipping. In some cases the mold engraver actually made an error and did not engrave a word, name or phrase correctly, but I dont think that is the case here. They are believed to be imports. I can say that the clear Ball Perfect Mason jars all date after 1937, when the color was changed from aqua or Ball Blue to clear glass. That is very interesting and I appreciate it. With your subscription, youll receive access to my Member Library where youll find Thanks, Laurie, in my opinion there is very little significance. And shipping costs has to be accounted for when scrutinizing ebay final bid prices. % of people told us that this article helped them. Another way the engravings on the jar can give you insight is when there is an adjective term somewhere on the jar, usually between the Ball and Mason logos. It is clear. Fruit jars were produced primarily in clear and Ball blue (aqua), but some amber, cobalt, and even milk glass examples can be foundout there in the wild, and they are likelyworth upwards of several hundred dollars. The markings and characteristics are similar to the Pint size jars described above. In general, mold numbers do not have any relevance to the worth of a particular 1858 jar, although some Hemingray 1858-type jars can be identified by their particular look of the mold numbers, very, very large and ornate on the base. I found two examples on ebay [at the time this was posted], one pint and one half gallon. The lettering on the jar is raised. In the above article, it states that the new reproductions are Perfect Mason but I purchased a set of the new amethyst pint jars and the side has a dropped A underlined Ball with IMPROVED beneath. The Buffalo Jar in amber is even rarer; only four are known to exist. Nan, I believe there are several jars known that fit that description. WebCracks in the glass, as well as stains, can reduce the value of the Ball jar. For the lid if you want to preserve it but its too dirty and rusty just gently clean it with water and a soft brush, and then use a sealant product to seal the rust and prevent further corrosion. Made in USA under the picture. Thank you for any information you can share. 8+ of them are Ball perfect Mason without the underline. There are many ways to date old Ball mason jars, and one of the easiest is to look at the logo. I also have a quart size Ball Perfect Mason, square, with 13F on the side and bottom. Any info anyone might be able to share would be great. B inside a diamond ~ mark on the base of a blue-aqua horseradish or pickle bottle made by Binghamton Glass Company, Hobnail candy dish in Amberina glass (Fenton inside an oval mark is on the base), Sapphire Blue Eastlake Childrens Mug, made by Atterbury & Company of Pittsburgh in the 1880s, New Collectors Edition BALL PERFECT MASON jars (with the cursive font style used in the 1910-1923 period) have appeared in grocery stores and department stores recently. The same number (#351) appears in the accompanying REDBOOK price guide (The Collectors Guide to Old Fruit Jars). amzn_assoc_region = "US"; Take care and thanks for your post. The jars I have at hand all have the word MASON centered (as normal) under the word PERFECT. On second look you can see a faint 13 in the background as well. Lee, thats an example of ghosting or ghost embossing, it is seen fairly frequently on older glass insulators, and on the base of some jars and bottles, mostly on older handblown bottles before, generally, 1920 or so. Pint, Decorative Embossing mark on base of amber beer bottle. Hi Misty, 1/2 Gallon,ShoulderSeal, c. 1910-1923 These Ball mason jars were manufactured in 1890. The self-sealing design was messy and stressful. There are unique words that signify the manufacturing year of a Ball Mason Jar. Ball Jars (detailed below). The base is marked with the H over smaller a logo. I have a Ball THE Mason, green tint, pint jar. But before we jump in, liets take a look at some of the history behind these vintage collectibles. To obtain a copy of the manufacturer's or supplier's warranty for this item prior to purchasing the item, please call Target Guest Services at As a leader in home food preservation, Newell Brands is the maker of Ball products,as well as these trusted brands, Kerr, Bernardin/MD, FoodSaver. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/b\/ba\/Date-Old-Ball-Mason-Jars-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/v4-460px-Date-Old-Ball-Mason-Jars-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/b\/ba\/Date-Old-Ball-Mason-Jars-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/aid4914400-v4-728px-Date-Old-Ball-Mason-Jars-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"