Sunday, May 11, 2008

Collecting Perfume Bottles

Perfume Bottles have been dated as far back as 1000 BC. The Egyptians used perfume in religious ceremonies quite lavishly. It is believed the Egyptians invented glass and quite possibly it was invented with the intent to hold scents created for these religious ceremonies. Perfume made the rounds from religion to fashion and soon the Greeks were making bottles out of clay and glass, many of the bottles were given an artistic touch and thus began the popular figural perfume bottles. The Romans believed perfume was an aphrodisiac and the containers were an important part of the experience. Exotic bottles from blown glass holding these magic scents enhanced the anticipated pleasure.
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Today, many women around the world use perfume quite often. Bottles made today are usually glass or plastic, many have a push type spray. The higher end bottles are usually quality made, have fancy stoppers, sometimes have a satin feel and they always look quite elegant. The atomizer, a bulb connected to the top of a perfume bottle allows the perfume to spay when squeezed became quite popular from the 1920’s through the 1950’s.
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Vintage commercial perfume bottles are quite popular today, collectors and decorators can find an assorted variety of perfume bottles from many era‘s. Their value is usually based on condition, however, content, packaging and labels should be intact to receive the highest value.
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There are many research books on the subject of perfume bottles. Searching the library, bookstores and ebay are generally the best resources available to collectors. There is also a lending library from the International Perfume Bottle Association where members can borrow books and videotapes. There is an annual fee of $45 so this would be something for serious collectors to look into.
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As always whatever you are buying to sell always do as much research on the subject as possible to get the maximum monetary benefit.

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