Bottling Paradise: The Future of Glass Bottle Archaeology in Hawai‘i

Abstract

As common-place consumables bearing the marks of datable production techniques and often durable labeling, glass bottles are a goldmine for any archaeologist equipped with the right analytical toolkit. By learning to decipher the age, sources, and uses of glass bottles, archaeologists not only gain a valuable tool for dating historic sites, they open a window into the trade networks and consumption patterns of the past, topics that are perennial favorites of the discipline. In analyzing glass bottle assemblages, certain aspects of a bottle’s life can be determined from close inspection of the bottle itself. These include: date of manufacture, place of manufacture, intended function, particular lip shape (i.e., bottle type), intended content, and place of bottling.