Empty glass bottle for medicinal water, Italy, 1920-1930
The inscription moulded into this glass bottle literally translates from Italian as “Anti-pestilence [or plague] water from Santa Maria Della Scala”. Santa Maria Della Scala is a Christian church in Rome, Italy. This medicinal water was believed to have the power to cure and to provide protection against disease. Bottles such as this would also be bought by as souvenirs by worshippers who had come to the church on a pilgrimage.
Object number:
A67459
Related Themes and Topics
Glossary:
Glossary: bottle
Vessels having a neck and mouth considerably narrower than the body, used for packaging and containing liquid and dry preparations
Glossary: medicinal water
No description.
Glossary: plague
An acute contagious fever with high levels of mortality. Both the 'Black Death' that swept Europe in the 1340s and the Great Plague of London in 1665 are believed to have been bubonic plague.