Perfume Bottles

December 3rd, 2008 | Antique Bottles, Collectible Bottles, Collectibles, Decorative Collectibles, perfume bottles

Jean Claude NOVARO Hand Blown Glass Perfume Bottle

US $3,200.00

Sale

ANTIQUE PERFUME BOTTLE HP ENAMEL PORTRAIT BOY BIRDS

US $3,000.00

Sale

Collectibles -> Vanity-Perfume-and-Shaving -> Perfumes

Perfume bottles are a highly collectible item, not just because of their uniqueness and beauty, but because they’re easy to store and display. They’re small, smaller than many other types of collectible items, so even those with limited space can enjoy collecting at least a few of their favorites. They can also be quite valuable ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, depending on the manufacturer and the design. Collecting them is such a popular hobby there are even organizations dedicated to the hobby and a number of books written about collecting different types of bottles.

Most people collect perfume bottles, not necessarily because of the value but because they find them beautiful. As long as there have been perfumed oils and fragrances for the body, there have had to be containers to hold them. While an ancient perfume container is a truly rare find, vintage perfume bottles produced over the last hundred years or so are easy to find in places like online auctions.

Perfume bottles from the 16th and 17th century will probably be Venetian and Murano glass, and can be valuable because they’re handmade, one-of-a-kind. Nineteenth-century bottles might be made from porcelain. Bottles made in the 20th century both benefited and suffered from mass-production. Now the bottles were uniform and exactly alike, allowing a perfumery to duplicate a bottle an infinite number of times, as well as produce more product more quickly for sale. But with that came the decline of hand-made, unique bottles.

One of the most famous perfume bottles created during the mid-20th century is the Lalique L’air du Temps, one any collector shouldn’t be without unless you choose to specialize in a certain type of bottle. This bottle features one or more frosted doves on top of the bottle. Empty bottles from the 1940s can go for anywhere from $50 and up at auction.

Other perfume bottles from these early years of mass production can be worth as much, or more. If you’re interested in the bottles solely for their investment value, it would pay to read some books about collecting them and how to judge the price of the items. Always look for bottles in the original box with any tags or charms still intact.

If you want to collect them mostly for the aesthetics, then it’s just a matter of deciding what you like. There are so many different types of perfume bottles that one could never hope to collect even a small portion of them, so it’s necessary to decide a direction, or decide just to collect a smattering of different styles.

You might choose to collect perfume bottles that held a certain perfume, or fragrances by a specific company. Lalique is a great example of a company that put out many beautiful bottles in different designs for its different scents. You might choose bottles that feature something specific, like flowers. Marc Jacobs’ Daisy has a beautiful flower-topped bottle. Or you might choose bottles from specific countries, or those produced during certain years.

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