A stopper is the removable plug that closes the neck of a decanter, bottle, jar or flask. In antique glass the stopper is usually made of glass with a tapering shank that has been ground to fit the neck of its particular vessel, creating a close seal, and with a decorative finial above for lifting it out.
Stopper shapes changed with fashion and help with dating. Georgian decanters may have flat disc, pinnacle or lozenge-shaped stoppers, while target or bull's-eye stoppers and moulded mushroom stoppers are associated with late eighteenth and early nineteenth-century examples, and Victorian cut glass often has faceted ball or spire stoppers. Scent bottles, apothecary jars, cruets and pharmacy bottles all have stoppers of their own types, sometimes of silver or other materials. Because each was ground individually, an original stopper fits its vessel snugly, and some makers scratched matching numbers on the stopper and the neck. A replaced or mismatched stopper reduces value, so collectors check the fit, style and colour of the glass. Stoppers that have become stuck should be freed with great care, using gentle warmth rather than force.
