ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Sunday, May 5, 1996                    TAG: 9605070074
SECTION: HOMES                    PAGE: D-3  EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: The Washington Post 

BIRD BOTTLE A POPULAR ITEM AT WILLIAMSBURG

Eighteenth-century settlers of Colonial Williamsburg may have believed a bird in the bottle is worth two in the bush when they set out glazed earthenware flasks as nesting places for martins and sparrows.

A reproduction of a 12-inch-high terra-cotta bird bottle is one of the museum's best sellers in early spring, according to products director Sophia Hart. The bottle, which costs $17.50, was copied from one found at the site of the James Geddy House. Other bottles found at tavern sites revealed that keepers favored this method of attracting birds to control insects. Call (800) 446-9240 for sales information.

The bottle is mounted horizontally on a nail or a tree branch that slips through a hole in the bottom. The three-inch neck lets small birds in to build nests but keeps out larger species and predators.

LENGTH: Short :   26 lines