Perfume bottle, silver lid, vinaigrette base

Glass perfume bottle, with silver lid and vinaigrette at the bottom, likely made by Frederick Marson and hallmarked in Birmingham, english, 1877

Combined with a red glass perfume bottle, the silver gilt vinaigrette at the base was a small container used for holding fragrant substances, often dissolved in vinegar. They were popular amongst wealthier sections of the British population from the late 18th century through the mid-19th century. Many were designed in silver, within which a tiny piece of sponge, soaked in the pungent scent, was contained beneath a grill or perforated cover.

Most likely to be carried by a woman, this object could be kept in a pocket, small bag or at the end of a chain and be quickly accessed in the wearer encountered some of the foul smells that would be a familiar part of life during those times – particularly in urban areas. In an era when disease was thought to been carried in the air via foul-smelling ‘miasmas’, vinaigrettes were also seen as having protective properties. Accessed via a hinged lid, the scent from it might also be inhaled if the wearer was feeling ill or faint – much like smelling salts.

This example was probably made by Frederick Marson, a jeweller based in Spencer Street Birmingham from the 1840s. The city was the main centre for vinaigrette production in the UK.