Each edition of SOTW will begin with some stats on sales in the past 28 days to give us all a sense of where the hobby is going.  In the past four weeks, 164 pre-pro glass auctions closed, 28 closed with no bidder, average price of the glasses that sold was $31.35.   Twelve glasses sold for >$100, none sold for >$1,000. 

It's been an "interesting" month in pre-pro land, as you can tell from the stats above.  It's also been an "interesting" month weather-wise, in that not only did the temperatures drop just below freezing here in Hotlanta, we actually had some snow (I can hear the collective gasp of  glasslusters as they read this).  About an inch or two of fluffy scenic stuff that stuck around for a day and then evaporated, leaving behind a snowperson on every lawn (Georgians get very excited about snow, especially the small ones).  I hear it snowed other places too?  Which may explain why we had so many glasses selling at premium prices - when collectors get snowed in, they head on over to eBay and start bidding up prices on the good stuff.

Case in point.  The baby "Old Hickory" at right is a nice glass - nice picture etc etc, but somehow it always has difficulty making more than $40.  The last one to list (6/09) couldn't even find a bidder at $29!  Yet this last month, a masked rider from northern CA galloped in and grabbed it for $100.99!  Hi ho Silver, giddy up thar boy...
... and then there was the Kentucky Colonel tumbler (left).  As most of you know, weirdly-shaped shots (think tonics) or shots that are actually highballs or worse, tumblers, are generally despised by shot-collecting purists.  Most are as difficult to sell as used ticket stubs to the Vancouver Olympics, or even faded O! So Goods (of which there were four last month).  But even given that last month was last month, the Poo-Bah was more than a little surprised when the Colonel took a bullet between the eyes and fell dead at $66.33.  The high bidder was atakeda, just in case you're wondering.  stlbottlebabe is still rolling on the floor laughing over that one.  I can only think that the listing title "Owensboro,KY prepro whiskey distillery hotel shot glass" was too tempting to resist.  Which might also explain why the Rieger's jug (above right) sold for over $100.  It's a nice glass and the value has been creeping up steadily, but 2ritzy2 set a record with this one, most likely because of the cryptic title "OLD KELLERSTRASSE ST LOUIS MISSOURI SALOON SHOT GLASS"!!  "Saloon glass" undoubtedly adds at least $50 to the value, even if it is a "Kellerstasse", wait, what the ....   ????  At least that's the way it listed originally.  nuffbarn and kcwhiskey jumped all over troll193939 on the description: Q: Are you selling the glass described or the one shown? If it is the described, are you selling the one shown? Thanks, Paul Feb-21-10 A: Paul: My mistake-sorry about that. Since someone has already bid on it, I WILL BE SELLING THE ONE PICTURED AND NOT THE ONE DESCRIBED. To all bidders, please note that its the pictured RIEGER SHOTGLASS SELLING and not the KELLERSTRASSE thats described. RLRT Q: What glass are you selling? You say Kellerstrass but picture Rieger's ????? I'd like to buy the Riegers monogram do you have a buy it now price?? Feb-21-10 A: nuffbarn: My mistake! So will be the one with the picture of the Jug on it thats for sale since someone has already bid on it. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE SHOTGLASS SELLING IS THE ONE WITH THE PICTURE OF THE RIEGER JUG ON IT and not the Kellerstrasse as described. RLRT OK, glad we're all clear on that.  The troll pulled the listing and started it over with a "Riegere" SALOON glass title - the Kellerstrasse is running as we speak.
Not that the snow-days inflation phenomenon is shot-glass related.  Love this old OFC tray from The Geo. Stagg Co., even if in "fair" condition.  Normal, not cabin-fever-infested value, maybe $85.  This one sold for a STAGGering (I capitalized just in case you were too stupefied or soporific to get the pathetic pun) $355.00.

Is it a bird, is it a plane, is it a duck, a swan, a crane????  No it's a STORK bringing Momma triplets.  The Siebe Bros & Plagemann is one of the few CA picture glasses that makes it onto eBay on a regular basis.  I say "regular", as in once every two years.  It's not hugely valuable but a nice glass nonetheless.  We had one on the sales page last month, which is the first time I'd seen one for a while.  Numero uno at left below sold to 2ritzy2 last week, but Momma eBay squealed and groaned and popped out two more glass puppies, both of which are up and running around the living room right now.  Is this coincidence or an attempt at guile?  Probably no, probably yes, respectively....

And even more bizarrely - here's double trouble on yet another San Francisco glass, but this is a rare one.  How many times have you seen this one on eBay?  The Poo-Bah has no recollection, but then his grey cells are thinning rapidly, along with his hair.  The first (at left below) appeared as a part of an 11-glass auction that got pulled when lakerdude33 managed to crack it open and convince seller stevedfish to convert to a bin - it sold at $350.  What's the likelihood of a second one showing up this decade?  Apparently pretty high because #2 is already up and running for the finish line.

 

This one gets my vote for ugliest glass of the month.  It first listed a month ago with a start  price of $24.95.  NOT surprisingly, there were no bids, so owner karensantiqueshack slapped it back in the shack with a $39.95 bin on it.  I saw that and considered the odds of her getting a bid.  They'd have to be reaaaaallly long, right?  Personally, I'd lobby for it being dropped down a shaft in Yucca mountain until it turned a reaaaaallly nice shade of puke, sorry puce, and then have someone put a "please do not disturb for 6 billion years and P.S. please don't touch anything else around here either" sign on it. A week later, kaBOOM - mybailey12 took it.  Must be a Traitel & Rice relative.  Maybe a blind one.  Speaking of which - I was recently listening to my favorite radio show "Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me" (news/comedy) on NPR and, as usual, they were having fun at the expense of Brits.  Apparently one of the cities in the south of England is making the Driver's Permit application available in Braille.....  Snort.  I think they should do that in FL also, brilliant idea.

This is my pick for the prettiest glass of the past few weeks, even though it is not a distillery, a whiskey, or even a liquor dealer glass.  In fact, it has a DOSE measure on it, suggesting that it might be  (swoon) a druggist glass.  The final bid on the glass was $129.45, with oldwhiskey sitting on the pointy end of the bid, nuffbarn in #1 loser position (thanks for the verbiage, nuffie! Ed). UNFORTUNATELY, while the listing description reads "This item is very old and we have never seen one quite like this! Ther is no damage at all and the glass reads "Medicated Blackberry Purity Bottling New Haven Conn." And also reads "One Dose". It measures 2-1/8" Tall. Check photo", the editors of SOTW are reliably informed that there is a humongous bruise in the rim at rear (above and to the left of the "M" of "Medicated" - you can see a shadow, Ed) -- the seller is promising to make good on this, but still..... and in case you're wondering, this is not a Truog glass so far as I can tell.

Before I get to the SOTW (finally! Ed) , I have to mention this lug - well, technically a "lup" (as in plastic) - that caught my eye (right).  It's still running, should you need to rush over and plant a bid.  If you surf the eBay shot-glass categories on a regular basis, I'm sure you've run across many ghastly examples of "stripper" glasses.  You know - they were popular in the '70s - glasses with labels on the side that are heat sensitive.  When the glass was emptied of the iced contents, the "clothing" peels off to reveal a naked babe (or mustachioed hunk) beneath.  I've always though that this would be a great ground-level collecting niche that's just ripe for the plucking, but the glasses are so incredibly seedy/sleazy/tacky that I always have a strong urge to jump in the shower right after finding one in the Bay.  But here's a very early example of a "naughty" shot - and a label-on-the-bottom to boot (you can read that any way you wish); imagine having her poke you in the eye after downing a shot of Crown Royal???!!!

So what about a pick for SOTW?

Many of you may grumble that bitters glasses shouldn't be featured as SOTW, but the Royal Pepsin Stomach Bitters glass below has to be the most interesting shot to show up in recent weeks.  It comes from L & A Scharff of St. Louis, MO. (& Canada) and by the look of it, it's an old one.  We'd have to see it up close to be sure, but I would guess it to be a truly acid-etched glass, as opposed to a stamped-on, white-frosted label.  The seal shows the lion and unicorn that you might recognize as the Royal Coat of Arms of the UK - it also appears on an amber bottle that is reproduced  at right (the drawing comes from Bitters Bottles, by Richard Watson).  Lazarus and Adolph Scharff were around from at least 1883 until Prohibition, but my guess it that this glass is from the early years of the company.  It sold for $124 and change.

 

Up for bids here is a nice early Bitters dose/shot glass. In good condition, with just some tiny chips and pings around lip.  (what the heck is a "ping"???   Puny ding?  Pin-sized ding?)