A charming and varied collection of seven antique eye wash cups, most likely dating from the late 1800s to early 1900s. Eye wash cups were a common household and medical item of the era, used to bathe and cleanse the eye with medicated solutions or plain water. This collection showcases the range of styles, materials, and makers that produced these everyday yet intimate objects during their peak period of use.
Each cup in the collection has its own character and markings:
- Clear glass cup with pedestal. The base is marked with a large central “G”, below which appears “12” and then “1.”
- Squat clear glass cup with no pedestal, marked “Pat. D-99865” with a circle of three leaves. All print is very faint and difficult to read.
- Milk glass cup on a pedestal, marked “2 – 2” on the base.
- Squat cobalt blue glass cup with no pedestal, marked “TORTRIX SAFE-GUARDS SIGHT” on the bottom.
- Clear glass cup with ridges and a pedestal, marked “1” on the base.
- Rare amber glass cup with a squat pedestal. The base appears to carry a spiral design, though the detail is too indistinct to read with certainty.
- Clear glass cup with pedestal, marked “ARDEN” on the base.
Together these seven cups offer a wonderful snapshot of the late Victorian and Edwardian eye care market, when branded eye health products were becoming increasingly common and glass manufacturers competed for a growing consumer audience concerned with personal hygiene and vision care.
