Antique Corkscrews
Corkscrews
When
opening wine, reaching for a corkscrew is second nature to most of us, but give
a thought to our pre 18th century forebears who had no such bottle openers.
It wasn’t until
1795 that the Rev Samuel Henshall first patented the first direct pull
corkscrew. This one action led seven years later to the first mechanical
corkscrew to be patented by George Thomason. This one patent subsequently
opened the flood gates for inventive designs and patents by names such as
Heeley, Lund, King’s Patent, Twigg, Farrow & Jackson and Cotterill.
Single lever, double lever, rack and pinion, zig-zag, rabbit, spring coil
and twin column corkscrews were adopted by the wine drinking public. During the
20th century another development happened in the form of advertising corkscrews
as wine drinking became more common amongst the masses and everyone had a
double lever corkscrew in their kitchen drawer.
Now in the 21st century, despite many wineries
adopting screw caps, corkscrews seem even more popular. Many people now collect
antique corkscrews or vintage corkscrews, fascinated not only by their often
slightly Heath Robinson construction but by the fact that they can actually use
an antique corkscrew in their everyday life. So next time you’re buying a gift
for a wine drinking friend why buy the ubiquitous Alessi Anna G double lever
corkscrew or a mass-produced Waiter’s Friend when you can opt for a 200 year
old Thomason Patent Corkscrew with bone handle and solid bronze body.
After all, why would you even ask the question “How do I open a bottle of
wine without a corkscrew?” when every gentleman should have a silver
cased travelling corkscrew at all times.
German Novelty Ladies Legs Corkscrew c1900
A very fine novelty corkscrew in the form of ladies legs made in Germany For more antique corkscrews, as well as a wide range of silver wine antiques, please visit Scottish Antiques online store.
£425.00
Mid Twentieth Century Double Lever Corkscrew, Possibly Italian c1950
Probably Italian in origin, this heavy weight nickel plated example of the now ubiquitous double lever design has age related wear to it's surfaces and works very well. The worm is 6cm long.
£20.00