Canteen On The Cheap

 

Ohhh, My Head: Spent the evening drinking too much mead at the tavern.  Everything hurts. But in the morning I leave on a mission to recover some medical supplies cached when a party was nearly ambushed on its way to Fort Consumption. Poor Bloody Me! I need a canteen! Wait...Maybe I can find an empty Madeira bottle in the bin behind the tavern. I could use it for a canteen. Huzzah!

For you Trekkers, you'll want to be fully equipped while keeping an eye on your budget. A suitable bottle is an economical way to store water when you venture away from the river. Yes, a glass bottle is heavy, but for the money, it will bring you a measure of authenticity until you can justify purchasing a more expensive tinned canteen.

I found a bottle similar to this one at a local hardware store for about $6.00. I liked its flat shape because it could be carried in a haversack without too much bulk. Also, it doesn't use a screw top, so I'm already on third base, ready to score a homer!

I moved down to the Fasteners section of the store and found a suitable cork for $.50. So for less than $7.00, I had a usable canteen that could pass muster as a period correct accouterment. I suspect that a period correct bottle would have been tinted to protect its contents, but for $7.00, who cares?

When you get home, the first thing you need to do is remove the cage that provides the necessary seal. I did this with a pair of pliers, using less effort than I thought would be necessary. All that is left to betray its 21st century origin are the two little holes at the bottle's neck.

You can carry your new canteen in a haversack, but remember that if it leaks or the cork gets loose, the contents of the bag will be soaked. Store this bottle canteen away from your fire starting material and your foodstuffs. You can make a fitted leather bag from leather for next year. If I do make one, it will be a simple leather envelope with leather laces for closures. Paper pattern, cut leather, punch holes, lace to close. Easy Peasy.

Of course, you can always check the rubbish bin behind you local tavern to see what you can find.