Oleum ae Serpylli

18th century

This blown-glass, urn-shaped drug jar has a long neck and applied foot. The label has been applied using a cold paint technique rather than being baked or fused with high heat. The label consists of a gold oval outlined in red with the text, <i>Oleum ae Serpylli</i> in black. The jar would have contained oil of thyme, which could have been prescribed as an antiseptic or expectorant. Urdang refers to this type of bottle as "noennchen", or "little nuns" in English. This is one of a group of five containers of the same size and shape.