Even today, once in a while, you will see jelly sold in a glass jar with a pop-off metal top. Like these Big Top Peanut Butter goblets, the glassware is meant to be kept as a drinking glass.
This was much more common in the 1950s, and the goblets made by Hazel Atlas for Big Top Peanut Butter are one of the best known examples of this method of marketing and packaging.
Big Top later became Jif, and I remember better the white milk glass goblets of similar shape and size that had a grape motif, made for Jif by Anchor Hocking.
The clear Hazel Atlas goblets are older, and have a nice sparkle in the light. The pressed glass is decorated with a diamond and fan motif on the sides of the goblet, and on the stem. The bottom has a starburst motif.
The tall goblets will hold about 14 ounces. I’ve also seen a shorter version that could be used as a dessert cup for ice cream, fruit or another vintage classic, Jell-O.
Big Top Peanut Butter glassware is included in the book on Hazel Atlas by Gene Florence (also see our book list on Amazon, linked at the bottom of the left column below in the Sites for Dishies section). There’s a new edition of this book coming out later this fall. We can’t wait!
These Hazel Atlas peanut butter goblets are a classic design, complementary to lots of traditional china patterns, and sure to show off a vintage table setting…
14 responses so far ↓
1 EpiphanyLondon // Sep 20, 2008 at 9:43 am
I thought these clear ones looked familiar – they reminded me of the white milk glass ones we had growing up in Indiana. Thanks for showing me the connection!
2 Tom // May 16, 2009 at 6:31 am
Hey! I always liked those in milkglass, only have one of these in clear, do you happen to have the lid?
also I am looking for this wine bottle by Hazel Atlas…
Know where I may find one?
Thanks!
Tom
3 Kimbesa // May 16, 2009 at 5:00 pm
Sorry, we didn’t get the tops.
Also, don’t know where you can find the wine bottle, except to keep looking online and on the ground at thrift stores and yard sales.
But, the hunt is fun!
4 jw // Aug 18, 2009 at 6:17 pm
Thank you for the information. I collect these because my grandma had them. With 9 kids, they went through a lot of peanut butter. You would think they could make their own living in south Alabama. It is a peanut growing center. Some of these I have found over the years are damage(etched?) by dishwashing. Is there anything that can be done? Also, do you know the years that these were distributed?
5 Kimbesa // Aug 19, 2009 at 1:14 am
Sorry, no way to fix the dishwasher haze. Even the liquid products have microscopic granules that etch the glass. You can still enjoy them, but they won’t be crystal clear.
We these these are from the 1950s and 1960s, based on memory.
6 LucyB // Oct 8, 2009 at 6:54 am
I have six of the clear sherbet bowls like this that were my grandma’s — and I love them! We’ve used them for years exactly how you suggested: for Jell-O, fruit salad and ice cream.
I had never seen them in milk glass, but read more about them and saw some different styles at http://www.replacements.com — the luncheon plate looks fabu!
7 Eloise // Jul 27, 2010 at 10:58 am
I have 7 of the sherbet dishes that belonged to my mother. Do you know their value?
8 Kimbesa // Jul 27, 2010 at 11:05 am
Sorry, don’t know the value, but you can look up on sites like Replacements dot com and get a general idea.
Condition will be important.
9 Jeanette Campbell // Oct 2, 2010 at 3:25 pm
The Big Top Peanut Butter clear glasses go much further back than 50′s. I am 74 and remember them when I was very little girl. I have quite a collection of both the tall and short glasses. They make me remember when I was a little girl. I now live in Fl and no one here knows what they are. I see them often in flea markets. The last time I saw one, I paid $3.00 each for it.
10 curtis // Oct 8, 2010 at 10:48 am
I have some old big top peanut butter jars. I would like to find out what they are worth, can someone help?
11 Kimbesa // Oct 8, 2010 at 9:17 pm
You might want to look at Replacements dot com. That would give you a starting point.
12 Marie Reed // Apr 22, 2011 at 9:57 am
I have been told that there are three sizes to the Big Top Peanut Butter glasses. Is this so?
13 Kimbesa // Apr 23, 2011 at 12:10 am
There could be. I’ve only seen two myself…the larger goblet in the photo, and the smaller sherbet or champagne size.
14 carol stephens // Aug 21, 2011 at 11:31 pm
There are three big top peanutbutter glasses . The third one is a “juice”, it holds about 4&1/2 ounces. It is about 1/2 inch shorter than the regular size,only not nearly as big around. They are very hard to find. I have only one.
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