DUPRS_0005 Boericke & Tafel New York Bottle

Dublin Core

Title

DUPRS_0005 Boericke & Tafel New York Bottle

Subject

Complete amber glass Boericke & Tafel bottle

Description

The rectangular bottle is made of amber glass and was found intact. It has Boericke & Tafel New York embossed onto the side. It stands at 6cm tall with a 2 cm diameter square base. There are two seams along the sides. The neck is round with a slight taper which could fit a cork stopper. The lip is a single ring that projects slightly towards the exterior of the neck. The interior edge where the lip meets the neck is smooth.

Creator

The bottle was produced for Boericke & Tafel a company specializing in homeopathic medicines and remedies starting in 1869 based in New York.

Source

Selective Surface Collection, Zone A west Stanley Park (south of trail), Historic Chatham Township (modern Summit, New Jersey)

Publisher

Drew University, Department of Anthropology, Drew University Passaic River Survey

Date

c. 1890

Contributor

Ava Valentino

Rights

The materials in this collection are made available for use for educational purposes only for research, teaching and private study. Texts and images from this collection may not be used for any commercial purpose without prior permission from the Department of Anthropology, Drew University.

Relation

https://www.trocadero.com/stores/stonegate/items/1426407/Group-Boericke-Tafel-19thC-Homeopathic-Medicine-Bottles

Type

Glass

Coverage

Boericke & Tafel was a pharmaceutical company specializing in homeopathic medicines and remedies. Comparative examples of this amber glass bottle can be found on the internet and is described as containing pills and manufactured in the 1890’s in New York.
Before Boericke & Tafel was founded, the origins of the company can be traced to Dr. Constantine Hering, the father of american homeopathy. He practiced in Philadelphia, PA and Hans Burch Ham, NY and founded one of the first homeopathic medical colleges in America. His best selling books influenced many other practitioners of homeopathy, such as William Radde, who was a bookstore manager for J. G. Wesselhoeft. He was relocated from PA to the NY branch of the bookstore and began selling homeopathic remedies. Eventually, William Radde became the sole owner of the franchise, which, “In 1869, F. E. Boericke and A. J. Tafel formed the partnership under the name of Boericke and Tafel. Together they bought the pharmacy and book-publishing business of William Radde in New York City. A. J. Tafel moved to New York to manage the business.” (http://www.herbmuseum.ca/content/boericke-tafel).
Homeopathy gave rise in the 19th century especially after the 1849 cholera epidemic. “Because of the superior results achieved by homeopathic physicians, many orthodox doctors took up the practice of homeopathy. At the same time, many of the intelligentsia were attracted to homeopathy because of its scientific basis in experimental pharmacology.” (http://www.homeoint.org/cazalet/boericke/story.htm)
Homeopathic remedies are still produced under the name Boericke and Tafel today. The amber hue of the bottle was probably to protect photosensitive contents. A variety of compounds could have been contained in this bottle, and they were even sold as “kits” that contained a number of remedites. Typically, there was a paper label adhered to each bottle.

Sources
-http://www.herbmuseum.ca/content/boericke-tafel
-http://www.homeoint.org/cazalet/boericke/story.htm
-http://www.boerickeandtafel.com/
-https://www.trocadero.com/stores/stonegate/items/1426407/Group-Boericke-Tafel-19thC-Homeopathic-Medicine-Bottles
-https://brianaltonenmph.com/6-history-of-medicine-and-pharmacy/hudson-valley-medical-history/a-chronology-of-homoeopathy/

Files

https://s3.amazonaws.com/omeka-net/54369/archive/files/a3efe8040c2ac4b44008e62b67b28038.JPG
https://s3.amazonaws.com/omeka-net/54369/archive/files/7c54c321b4849a4b424463164d2cbf92.JPG
https://s3.amazonaws.com/omeka-net/54369/archive/files/6449ce4f7602d6158da9953cc072c1cf.JPG
https://s3.amazonaws.com/omeka-net/54369/archive/files/5cc079a5a0df276f32f5b42cda2f0430.jpg

Citation

The bottle was produced for Boericke & Tafel a company specializing in homeopathic medicines and remedies starting in 1869 based in New York. , “DUPRS_0005 Boericke & Tafel New York Bottle,” Drew University Library Special Collections, accessed March 28, 2024, http://omeka.drew.edu/items/show/667.