Vintage 1860’s apothecary bottle will cure what ails ya and most certainly would not be legal today. Dr Wistar’s Balsam of Wild Cherry Philada embossed on a 6 1/2 inch aqua 8 sided, center hinge mold, medicine bottle.
Circa 1840, Henry Wister developed a nostrum, Dr. Wistar’s Balsam of Wild Cherry, a heady mélange of cherry bark, alcohol and opiates. Sales were enormous which is not surprising. Dr. Wistar’s Balsam of Wild Cherry was on the market for over 100 years. Its bottles, made long after the Wistarburgh glassblowers last fired the furnace near the dawn of the Revolutionary War, remain highly prized by glass collectors.
In its heyday, the Balsam was the best selling nostrum on the market. At a buck a bottle, it was worth a shot! Even if just for the buzz.
- Cincinnati, OH
- Size: 6″H
- Vintage
- Discovered in New York