I did a little shopping this weekend at my favorite antique and “junk ‘in” spots! I found some really cool old Ball jars. They are quart sized and have sloped shoulders. Some of the glass is wavy and many have bubbles. I’ve never seen any quite like this before, so I brought them home. After doing some research online, I found that these are probably one of the earlier sets of Ball jars to be manufactured. Would you like to know how old your vintage mason jar is?
Dating an old Ball jar can be more difficult than I had thought. But, I found this chart on Pinterest, which was very helpful! Unfortunately, there was no source to credit.
The jars that I found have what is known as the “triple L”. It is the first one in the second row shown above. Why “triple L or 3L”? – because some thought the fancy loop at the end looked like a third L.
This site, West Saint Paul Antiques, has wonderful information on dating fruit jars if you would like to find out more about an old jar you may have! Here’s the section of their site that describes the ones I found.
About 1895, Ball began using machines (these jars have smooth lips) and began to phase out the old blowing methods. This transition took several years. The machine made jars exhibited a new script style which was never seen on any of their handmade jars. The script style was that of a cursive Ball with an extra loop at the end, known as “3-L” Ball jars. They also continued to make the MASON’S PATENT NOV 30th 1858 jars (machine made smooth lipped varieties) up into the early 1900’s. The very first machine made Ball jar is not positively known, but most likely was either a Ball STANDARD or a Ball IMPROVED MASON. This script style was used up until about 1910. Ball produced many jars with this script style, the Ball MASON jars and ones with just Ball and no other embossing appeared right about the turn of the century. (3-L jars c1896-1910)
So, I’m pretty confident that these jars do date c1896 – 1910, which makes sense because one thing that drew me to them were the awesome bubbles and waves in the glass. And, each jar is slightly unique in placement of the raised lettering – which would indicate that they are not machine made. All of the jars I found have zinc lids with the milk glass inside. Some of the zinc lids have Ball embossed on them, but others are just plain.
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You just gave me a great idea – you could do a screen shot of the chart with your phone as a quick reference when out thrifting or even print it out!
I have a gallon Ball jar w/zinc lid, & w/ no logo or other marks on the side. There is the name “Ball” on the bottom along w/ other numbers. Is this enough to date my jar?
Wow – I’ve never seen one like that? Sorry I can’t help you with that one.
I have 3 of these kind also. Curious to know if you found out information on it? Thanks!
What color are they
I have a aqua colored perfect mason jar that has bubbles in glass on throughout the words it’s feels like Brazil on the words and has a 1 – on bottom when was it made is it rate
I have a half gallon blue Fruit jar that only has Mason on it no Ball any information on this please
I’m sorry that I don’t have any information about this kind of jar.
I also have these jars. They were found in my MIL’s house. She is 84 and the house was her mother’s and over 100 years old. Haven’t been able to find anything even close on the internet. The bottom has a 14(circled), an A, 75, and 5 raised circular dots.
I have a quart jar with Mason cursive and underlined on one side. The opposite side has a picture of The Liberty Bell with 1776 on top of picture and 1976 underneath. Any clue when this was made and the worth?
These were made in 1976. Here is a listing for four for sale on Etsy. https://www.etsy.com/listing/589954441/vintage-canning-jars-vintage-mason
I have a jar that says “the Mason” a few air bubbles and the edges from the mold. How old is this jar?
I’m not sure. You can do some searches on the internet. I only have the information for the “Ball” brand jars.
I have a pint size light blue triple L ball jar with several air bubbles with the lid. No chips or cracks. The lid is oxidized but not rusted. How much do you think it is worth?
I’m sorry, but I don’t know.
I have a Ball jar that from the logo tells me it is from 1900-1910. It also has air bubbles and an ampersand on the bottom. And it has a zinc lid. What do you think the value of it might be?
I was told by an old junk resale guy, that had crates and crates of these – I bought a bunch of them- that the numbers on the bottom mean something about the value- and the #8 is one that he said is most sought after- he would tell me why, and made me turn each one I bought over so he could make sure I wasn’t getting one with that number (lol) all of mine have the triple “L” with zinc lids and milk glass insert.
I would like to say I made a mistake in my previous comment- it was #13 not #8.
But- I found this explaining the mold number on the bottom and the myth about #13
http://www.fruitjar.org/ballweb/FAQ.htm
These Ball jars are a great find. I notice you did not mention their color. I’m thinking the color might help in some part of identification.
I found the post about identifying Ball Jars as a post on my facebook page from an Account known as “Vintage History.” I am inspired to get a better look at those I have.
I have a Ball mason jar, blue, wire closure, I have identified as 1923 to 1933 based on logo, not a dropped “a” and no underscore, IDEAL all caps underneath. Most information I see online shows embossed patent date 1858 or 1908. This one does not have any embossed patent date underneath IDEAL. Bottom of jar has what looks like a Question Mark without the period, and under that a dash about one CM distance from the Questions Mark.
Sorry, adding information to previous comment. This is a very light blue, vintage appearing jar. Was wondering if there is a difference between the IDEAL jars that have the patent dates versus this one? Sorry for any confusion. Any information is appreciated!