Slouch hat made from melted milk bottle

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c. 1930 - 1950

Overview

Decorative glass ornament modeled in the shape of a classic Australian Army slouch hat. It features a high crown with a central crease and a broad brim which is turned up on one side, as traditionally worn by the soldiers in the First and Second Australian Imperial Forces.
Much of the original embossed writing on the bottle is still visible and includes the text 'PLEASE WASH AND RETURN EMPTY BOTTLE' and fragments of other phrases such as 'THIS BOTTLE ... FRESH FOOD ...ICE COY".
Due to the moulding and shaping of the bottle, some of the words have been lost or obscured.

Historical information

The bottle used to create this slouch hat was made by the historic 'New South Wales Fresh Food and Ice Company' which operated from 1866, when it was founded by businessman Thomas Sutcliffe Mort, through to 1952 when it ceased independent operations after being acquired by Peters Consolidated Milk Industries.
The company pioneered commercial refrigeration and artificial ice-making in Australia, transforming how perishable food, meat, and milk were stored and transported across the state.
They invested heavily in bottling lines during the 1920s and it is thought that this bottle dates from between 1930-1950.

Although the maker is unknown, it is likely that they were a trained glass artisan or craftsman familiar with the bottle slumping technique done in a kiln. The heat would firstly be raised slowly (to prevent cracking) and then increased to roughly 700°C to 730°C (1,300°F to 1,350°F) and held for 10–20 minutes until the bottle collapsed flat under its own weight. It could have been melted down over a specific ceramic mould inside a kiln to reshape the glass. The temperature would then be slowly returned to room temperature before removing from the kiln.

Another example of a slouch hat is held in the collection. It has known provenance and was made by an Italian internee at Cowra Prisoner of War camp in the latter part of World War Two. The bottle used to make this particular slouch hat is of similar age to the Italian POW made example.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-119-RoW01048

Item type

Artefacts

Collectibles

Decorative Objects

Souvenirs

Themes

Art and Design

Leisure

Social History