Wine seal

This artifact is a complete seal from a wine bottle. It was excavated in Toronto by Archaeological Services Inc. in 2011. The site was occupied by the Toronto General Hospital built in 1819-1820 and demolished in 1862. The artifact was found in a deposit dating from the Hospital era. The embossing identifies the provenance of the wine, the “Chateau C. De Longueville” which refers to a domain in Paulliac, from France Bordeaux region. This type of seals could identify either the provenance or the bottle’s buyer and are relatively rare in Ontario archaeological contexts.