Artifact of the Week: Beer Bottle

Archaeologists recovered this beer bottle from Downtown San Diego. The site housed a working class population during the late Victorian period (c.1880-1915). This bottle would’ve had a cork stopper.

Because the Post-Contact Period is so short and the Euro-American population of San Diego was so small, there are relatively fewer post-contact archaeological sites than there are pre-contact ones. However, Post-Contact Period artifacts have a lot to tell us about life in early San Diego. Archaeological excavation can often reveal more about everyday life and ordinary people than what is written in the official version of history.

Date: Post-Contact Period (300 ya – present)
Material Class: Glass

Want to learn more? Visit the exhibit Block 112: The Untold Story of San Diego’s Working Class in the 1800s currently on view at the Center.