Florida officials recently announced that two 18th-century pieces of “onion grass” have been discovered in waters outside the Sunshine State.
The Florida Department of Historic Resources announced the discovery on October 8 in a social media statement regarding the bottle's recent restoration. In a Facebook post, the department shared an old photo of the jar covered in barnacles and a new photo of the restored artifact. The post credits the successful restoration to “careful and slow cleaning and drying.”
“Peeling back the layers of this onion was certainly tough!” the post read. “After careful and slow cleaning and drying, the bottle remained intact, and was then treated with Paraloid B-7, an acrylic resin-based solidifying agent commonly used to preserve glass and ceramics. It was solidified.”
Mark Ard, director of external affairs for the Florida Department of State, told Fox News Digital that the bottles were recovered from shipwrecks off Indian River County in 2021 and 2022.
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Florida officials announced that two unique bottles from the 1700s were recently restored. (Florida Division of Historic Resources, via Facebook)
“Although the exact ship has not been identified, this ship was part of the Spanish Plate Fleet sailing from Cuba to Spain in 1715,” Ard explained. “The Spanish Plate Fleet of 1715 was hit by a hurricane and lost at sea along the east coast of Florida.”
Ard called the bottles intact and an “unusual” find, noting that the beverage containers were empty when they were discovered.
“It is presumed that some alcohol was present,” officials said.
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“These bottles are so fragile that it's incredible that they first survived the destruction of a ship, then were submerged underwater and exposed to tidal forces for more than 300 years.”
Florida officials said the bottle was likely manufactured in the United Kingdom. Ard said every bottle of Onion is unique.
Conservators carefully restored the bottle and worked diligently to remove barnacles from the bottle. (Florida Division of Historic Resources, via Facebook)
“Onion bottles are free-blown using pontiles. Each one is unique, so there is variation in size, shape and weight,” he explained.
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“These are handmade by skilled craftsmen,” Ard added. “The onion jars would have been carried as cargo and used by the crew and passengers on board.”
The official also emphasized how important Spain's treasure fleet was to global maritime trade in the 18th century.
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“The flow of goods and raw materials from Central and South America, and to a lesser extent Asia, was crucial to the economy of the Kingdom of Spain as well as many other countries in Europe,” he said. “The chocolate and other goods carried on these ships also fundamentally changed social customs that are still seen today.”
“The Spaniards mixed sugar and cacao to make drinking chocolate, which was often served in specific Chinese porcelain vessels transported by plate fleets.”
Ard told Fox News Digital that these bottles are now available for loan as part of the Artifact Loan Program.
Each “onion bottle” made with craftsmanship has a unique shape. (Florida Division of Historic Resources, via Facebook)
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“In Florida, examples of onion jars loaned by the Division are on display at History Miami, the Pensacola Historical Museum, and the McLarty Treasure Museum in Sebastian, Indian River County,” he explained.
