Snakes in the Wonderful World of Fruit Jars

Collecting can be a lot of fun. And who doesn’t love fruit jars! But as is so often the case, things are not always what they seem. Those ancient Romans knew what they were talking about with that whole “Caveat Emptor” business. 

 So what are we dealing with? Well, we have originals, of course. Then there are reproductions, alterations, and fakes. Yikes! 

 Reproductions are jars that are similar to originals but are not intended to deceive the collector. They are often commemorative jars and are marked as reproductions. Let me give you an example. In 1976, Ball Corporation decided to reproduce one of the rarest Ball jars: a quart amber hand-blown “Buffalo Jar.” 

Original quart amber Buffalo Jars were made by Ball Brothers Glass Manufacturing Company in Buffalo, NY from 1884 to 1886 (Minnetrista Heritage Collection

Reproduction Buffalo Jars made by Indiana Glass Company in Dunkirk, IN for Ball Corporation in 1976 (Minnetrista Heritage Collection)

 No, Buffalo jars have nothing to do with the large furry animals that roam Yellowstone Park. They were made by the Ball Brothers Glass Manufacturing Company in Buffalo, New York, from around 1885 to 1886. The amber jars were embossed with “BBGMCo.”, the 19th century Ball Brothers logo. To make them as authentic as possible, Ball hired glassblower Joe Miller, an employee of the Indiana Glass Company in Dunkirk, Indiana, to do the job. According to the August 18, 1976 issue of The Star Press, these were the “first fruit jars to be hand-blown in this country in almost 70 years.” 

 The jars came with a white milk glass lid and a zinc band. The Ball-made milk glass lids had lettering that was slightly larger than the originals, but the wording was the same. The zinc bands were produced at the Ball Zinc Division plant in Greeneville, Tennessee, and the off-white synthetic rubber rings were manufactured by the Ball Rubber Division in Chardon, Ohio. These special jars were sold by mail order, and each included a small brochure and its own presentation box. 

 Ball made it very clear that these were reproductions. The embossed lettering on the bottom of the jars read, “A Historic Reproduction / No. 1 / The Amber Buffalo Jar / Muncie, Indiana – 1976.” This was also the first time that the word “Muncie” appeared on a Ball fruit jar.

Ball Corporation clearly indicated on the base that the jar was a reproduction (Minnetrista Heritage Collection)

A brochure filled with information about the reproduction Buffalo Jar was packaged with the jar. It included the jar’s history and how it was made (Minnetrista Heritage Collection)

 Today, unfortunately, some fruit jar sellers and manufacturers are not as ethical as Ball. Hence, we enter the dark, snake-infested world of alterations and fakes. 

 Let’s start with alterations. Alterations are used to modify an existing fruit jar with the intention to deceive. The common method used today is irradiation. The intent is to produce rare or unusual colors of glass that unwary collectors would snap up in a heartbeat. So, instead of a quart clear Ball Perfect Mason jar selling for $2.00, that same quart, now deep purple, could be priced at $50.00 or more.

 So, how does this work? Unlike a natural process where clear glass, because of its manganese content, can develop a purple cast when exposed to sunlight, machines are used to change the integral color of the glass. Sterilizing equipment is often used for this purpose. The two most common colors produced are dark purple and amber/brown. And no, these irradiated jars are not radioactive and will not cause you to glow in the dark.

Brown irradiated Ball Ideal fruit jar (Minnetrista Heritage Collection)

Deep purple irradiated Ball Improved fruit jar (Minnetrista Heritage Collection)

 So, that leaves us with fakes. Fakes are made with the intent to deceive the buyer, such as new, cheaply made jars manufactured to look like collectible antique jars. These are often imports made in the Far East, especially China, Taiwan, and India. These jars look new and show no wear or damage. They may be slightly different in size or style or have embossing that is somewhat larger or smaller than the original. And the glass colors may be unusual or brighter than the colors of antique jars.

 A number of fakes are known to collectors. For example, quart amber Trade Mark Lightning jars were made in Taiwan in the mid-1980s. They don’t have the normal flaws you’d expect to find in the antique jars, and the mold seams don’t wrap around to the base. They all have PUTNAM 227 on the base, an embossing that could be found on the real jars. Another example is a half-pint blue Ball Perfect Mason jar, which has 3 or 9 on the base. The color of the fake jars is lighter than the originals, and the mold lines on the sides are uneven.

 There is nothing wrong with collecting reproduction, altered or fake fruit jars as long as it’s a decision you make and not one you’ve had illicitly imposed on you. Collecting fruit jars is a great hobby! Enjoy it or the hobby of your choice in good health. Just beware of those nasty snakes.