Late Victorian Beaded Grape Auto Vase

Before the advent of automotive air conditioning, traveling by car on a hot summer day was anything but pleasant. The noxious aroma of engine oil blending with pungent smell of body odor permeated the sweltering heat. For those transporting the dead in a hearse, the odor could be even worse. Fortunately, in 1895, a solution of sorts came about with the invention of the auto vase. Its name coined by American industrialist and business magnate Henry Ford, the auto vase was a bud vase designed to hold a small bouquet of sweet smelling flowers to help make unsavory car journeys more pleasant. Often made of glass, crystal, metal or porcelain in varying designs, colors and price, these automotive vases were mounted with a bracket on the dashboard or next to the passenger side window. They were commonly sold in jewelry stores, auto part shops and even catalogs. Henry Ford loved them so much that he mass produced them and offered them in his parts department. Once air conditioners started