Here is a quicksilver (mercury) flask made of solid iron. It measures about 4 inches in diameter, 

and 20 inches from the bottom to the top cap. I cannot find any markings on it, but I was told that it was from the New Almaden Quicksilver Mine in Santa Clara County, California. I have sold some other mercury flasks from there.

It is the oldest and, at one time, the most productive quicksilver mine in the United States.  

The mine is named for the Almaden Quicksilver Mine in Spain. The New Almaden Quicksilver Mine began operations about the same time with the onset of the California Gold Rush. New Almaden was able to supply copious quantities of mercury that many of the processing mills

 used to amalgamate gold and separate it from crushed ore. 

The standard measure of commercial mercury sales is the "flask" which is defined to hold 76 pounds of the liquid metal. The flask is empty. New Almaden operated from 1847 to 1976 when it was purchased by Santa Clara County to create the Almaden Quicksilver County Park. The property was remediated after being declared a Superfund site, and the county now operates the Casa Grande Almaden Quicksilver Mining Museum in one of the large houses originally built by the mine. 

These types of flasks are significant historical artifacts of the mining history of the West. 

Look at all pictures and please bid with confidence, Thank you.