The first ships in bottles date back centuries though these original creations were actually placed in bottles with the spout point downward — not on the side as is usual today. The craft really exploded in the mid-19th century when improved glassmaking made bottles thinner, more even, and free of air bubbles that would otherwise distort the image of the model inside. Jim Goodwin, a retired geologist who for 25 years, has been perfecting the maritime tradition of fitting pint-sized keels, hulls, and top sails inside glass bottles. Proud owner of his own business Carolina Ships in Bottles — a not-so-subtle shout out to his home state — Goodwin is a self-described textual kinesthetic, meaning he’s a bit of a fidgeter. So for nearly a quarter-century, he’s kept his hands busy crafting ships of all types, whether the notorious pirate vessels, famous U.S. frigates, or the many other famous ships-of-line that navigated the world’s oceans during the Age of Sail, and placing them snugly inside their own glassy worlds. More from the Made Here series: Mining for Himalayan salt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mS0yKqmwVCc From a block of wood to a Fender guitar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B589M-JpjG4 The beautiful tiles of southern India: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWsVY_CNg7Y How pencils are made: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0D54zPzRtk How furniture is made from recycled plastic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHcdFnz6fvY The heart and soul of mezcal in Mexico: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=op-gQX1ledQ -------------------------------------- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/popularmechanics Twitter: https://twitter.com/PopMech Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/popularmechanics/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/popmech/?auto_follow=1 Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@popularmechanics?lang=en #madehere #howitsmade #shipinbottle The Art of Building Ships in Bottles