ANTIQUE SHIP IN A BOTTLE

Welcome to the antique ship in a bottle website, we specialise in genuine antique sailor made ship's in bottles. We have been selling Maritime antiques and Nautical collectables for over 30 years, however we feel that the sailors folk art of making tiny ship models and putting them into bottles deserves special attention. Every ship in a bottle is totally unique and it is one of the most skilled forms of sailor's craft. 

The most common type of model to be found in a ship in a bottle is the Merchant sailing ship. These vessels were also referred to as Square riggers, Windjammers or Tall ships because of their square shaped sails, vast amounts of sail area or the extreme height of their masts.

This type of ship model was popular because the deep water sailors who worked aboard this type of ship often had long periods of time off-watch. The voyages were often long and slow, so in order to pass the time and prevent boredom the sailors became craftsmen.

One of the most popular pastimes was to make a model of the ship they were working aboard.

These sailors perfected the art of making tiny model sailing ships from scraps of wood and inserting them into glass bottles. Not only was there a lot of skill needed to construct the model, but they also needed to know the special technique of how to get it through the neck of the bottle. The sailors also needed a working knowledge of the ships rigging in order to create an accurate and realistic model. Ships in bottles were usually made as a gift for loved ones back home or made to sell whilst in port to increase income. 

We created the antique ship in a bottle website to celebrate this amazing and curious form of sailors folk art. The website is categorised into how many masts the sailing ship has or the type of ship that is contained within the bottle.

Square rigged sailing ships can also have several different types of sail layout, these are referred to as the type of "Rig" or how the vessel is rigged - for example a FULLY RIGGED SHIP or a BARQUE.