Houston 24 Expo – Wilber & Gugliotti Barber Bottle Exhibition Opening

Various groupings of shaving paper vases and barber bottles. These photographs occurred as full-page spreads in the exhibition book

Exterior of the Hamill Gallery at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Five large backlit barber bottle panels inset into display cabinets facing the Alfred C. Glassell Jr. Hall invited guests into the space.

Another dramatic photograph showing the Hamill Gallery entry panels.

Exhibition entrance foyer graphics panels. FOHBC Midwest Region director Henry Hecker in the picture.

The room was darker to accentuate the inset display cases full of barber bottles and shaving paper vases.

The barber bottles pictured in this display case are embossed on the base W T & Co. They were made between 1877 and 1901 by Whitall Tatum & Company which was one of the first glass factories in the United States.

Decorated blue glass shaving paper vases paired with barber bottles. Behind every working barber were his back bar tools of the trade, which included his razors, strops, combs, brushes, shaving mugs, and other glass accessories such as barber bottles, bowls, jars, and shaving paper vases.

Primarily Loetz-type barber bottles. The Loetz glassworks in Klostermuhle, Austria, existed for over a hundred years, starting in 1840. Their heyday was during the lifetime of Max Ritter Von Spaun, grandson of the original Johann Loetz, who founded the company. Von Spaun was assisted by Eduard Prochaska, his technical specialist, and together they invented, designed, and produced a whole series of wonderful new types of glass, taking out several patents and winning awards at all the major world exhibitions during the 1890s and the turn of the century

Loetz-type bottles juxtaposed with an orangish opalized marble decorated bottle.

An iridescent Loetz-type bottle in a rare form and marine-blue coloration. The bottle has a sheared and polished lip and is 6 3/4 inches tall.

This very rare emerald green “Antiseptic” vase is for holding sterilizing liquid for razors and tools and came with a metal cover. The vase, with a floral decoration, is 6 inches tall and is pictured in the 1915 Theo. A. Kochs Barbers’ Supply Catalogue.

A beautiful and very rare butterfly-floral decoration. The cylindrical white milk glass barber bottle is 9 1/4 inches tall and has a painted lip.

Barber bottles can be found in many shapes, sizes, and colors. These examples are spectacular, with the painted decorations, forms and special patterns in the glass.

Cylindrical milk glass barber bottles initially appealed to an expanding middle class who aspired to the finer things in life. Milk glass was porcelain for the masses, an inexpensive substitute for luxurious tableware and accessories made by such companies as Wedgwood and Spode, whose designs milk glass manufacturers sometimes imitated shamelessly.

A pair of scarce barber bottles with a prominent stag decoration set within a gold-framed oval. Both bottles are 7 3/4 inches tall and use a white floral accent decoration. The barber bottle was also available in amethyst glass.

Barber bottles can be found in many shapes, sizes, and colors as this display case demonstrates. These examples are spectacular, with the various shapes and elaborately painted decorations.

A scarce form with vertical ribs and a scarce rose or cranberry colored glass. The decoration features a large flower and baby’s breath on this 7 7/8 inches tall barber bottle.

There were 20 dramatic display cases of barber bottles in the Hamill Gallery grouped to parallel sections in the corresponding exhibition catalog and exhibition book.

An amazing group of barber bottles in various forms and shapes each with a strong use of gold paint to display the floral decorations.

A variety of cylindrical milk glass barber bottles in various sizes, shapes and forms. The painted decorations on theses examples represent the highest degree of quality. Note that some of the bottles are personalized with the customer name.

Label under glass bottles made with color images of attractive women used for gifts. These decorative barber bottles were sometimes filled with colored water until the product was sold and substituted with a genuine example that was presented to the customer.

Examples of tall cylindrical barber bottles paired with other curvaceous examples in this display case. The bottle’s body is sensual, as is the tall tapering neck. Men would appreciate bottles in barber shops and often purchase examples to take home.

Mary Gregory-type barber bottles. Mary Gregory (1856–1908) was an American artist known for decorating glass products at the Boston and Sandwich Glass Company in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, from 1880 to 1884. She was particularly well known for her paintings of Victorian-era children, and such artwork has been called “Mary Gregory” since the 1920s.

In the male dominion barber shop, an extraordinary depiction never fails to mesmerize—the portrayal of a pretty woman. With graceful brushstrokes and vibrant expression, these image profiles on curvaceous barber bottles capture the essence of feminine beauty. The artist’s meticulous attention to detail creates a sense of sophistication and elegance.

Examples of hobnail glass which has a regular pattern of raised knobs like the hobnail studs sometimes used on boot soles. These bottles are displayed with “opalized” glass bottles of similar shape and form.

A patriotic red, white and blue decoration with gold calligraphy on a Bay Rum label. Beautiful contrasting green leaves positioned behind the shield. The milk glass white bottle is 10 7/8 inches tall.

Rare barber bottles with a “thumbprint” pattern in the turquoise and yellow amber glass with floral decorations.

This 9 1/2 inch tall Bay Rum bottle uses a floral motif set on a rich blue-colored wrap. A colored background is more desirable than a plain milk glass background. W T & Co. marked on the base.

Shaving paper vases were usually cylindrical and ranged from five and a half inches to nine inches tall. The vases came in various designs and shapes and would cost more than the matching bottle. Customers were enticed to buy matching sets for their personal home grooming.

Sensational decorated cylindrical barber bottles with beautiful nature and floral themes. Many of the bottles are personalized with the customer name, initials or in some cases, a monogram.

An unusual Toilet Water bottle with a green floral wrap on the body and a pink wrap on the neck. The cylindrical milk glass bottle is 7 3/4 inches tall without the metal stopper.

A mixed group of decorated barber bottles on colorful glass in both translucent and opaque applications. Themes range from pretty woman, to floral to patterned.

An assortment of glass barber bottles in various shapes, sizes and forms.

Beautiful and colorful mallet or bell-shaped white milk glass bottles and central shaving paper vase each with a Victorian hand painted scene or decoration.

Display case of paired shaving paper vases and barber bottles.