Best Of The West Live Auction
November 13, 2026 5:30 PM PT
Golden Gate Bottle Auctions is proud to present the Best of the West Live Auction, featuring 72 exceptional lots from the Jeff Wichmann Collection. This special auction showcases an outstanding selection of rare Western bottles, along with four exceptional insulators. Jeff's longstanding passion for Western bottles and his contributions to the collecting community are reflected in this remarkable collection.
The auction will take place Friday, November 13, 2026, at the Gold Country Fairgrounds in Auburn, California, in conjunction with the 49er Bottle Show. Live bidding begins at 5:30 PM Pacific.
Absentee bids will be updated periodically in the online catalog. Please note that online bidding will not be available before or during the live auction on November 13.
→ Register For The Live Auction
The auction will take place Friday, November 13, 2026, at the Gold Country Fairgrounds in Auburn, California, in conjunction with the 49er Bottle Show. Live bidding begins at 5:30 PM Pacific.
Absentee bids will be updated periodically in the online catalog. Please note that online bidding will not be available before or during the live auction on November 13.
→ Register For The Live Auction
Cal Ink Co. S.F.
Circa 1880s–1890s, tooled top, 2 3/8". A very rare Western ink with only a couple of known examples reported. This example was recovered from an Oakland, California privy about ten years ago alongside a Hostetter's Bitters and a Bliven Soda. It is documented that the California Ink Company was not operating in San Francisco until the 1890s, yet more than one of these bottles have been found in contexts predating the 1890s by at least five to ten years. Interestingly, a California Ink Company was operating in National City, California, as early as 1881. Perhaps that firm maintained an agent or distributor in San Francisco and marketed its products in these embossed bottles. Additional research is needed to better understand the history of this bottle. The design closely resembles the aqua NE PLUS ULTRA FLUID schoolhouse ink bottle, a form that likely predates these examples by several years.
Description & Condition: Amber. Tiny 1/16" bruise/flake to the bottom of the lip and a 1/16" flake near the base edge. Professionally cleaned.
Min. Bid $500 - Est. $1,000–$2,000
R.L. Higgins Virginia City
Circa 1871–1875, applied top, 6 1/2". Rufus L. Higgins was a Virginia City pioneer who arrived around 1863 and participated in a variety of business ventures. An 1871 advertisement notes he operated the "Virginia Dollar Store," where everything from women's undergarments to picture frames could be purchased for one dollar or less. By 1873 he had moved into a new location and shifted his focus to stationery and writing supplies. Unfortunately, his business was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1875, and he was forced into bankruptcy shortly thereafter. This bottle is one of the few embossed Western ink bottles and the only known Western master ink besides the base–embossed Pacific Glass Works master ink. These are exceptionally rare, with only two amber examples and approximately three aqua examples known. Both amber masters were discovered in California: one by Mike Dolcini in Davis and the other by Randy Haumann and Ralph Van Brocklin in San Francisco. The example offered here is the latter bottle, excavated by Randy and Ralph in San Francisco.
Description & Condition: Dark golden amber color with abundant whittle and crude glass. A beautiful early Nevada bottle.
Min. Bid $4,500 - Est. $9,000–$14,000