Period: Hellenistic
Date: 2nd–early 1st century B.C.
Culture: Greek, probably Eastern Mediterranean
Medium: Glass
Dimensions: H. 5 7/16 in. (13.8 cm) diameter 6 1/8 in. (15.6 cm)

Translucent deep honey brown, opaque white, and colorless.
Flaring rim with rounded edge; concave neck; convex curving side, tapering downward; shallow convex bottom within applied outsplayed base ring with rounded edge.
Onyx mosaic pattern formed from fifteen large rectangular or polygonal sections of a cane in a brown ground with multiple concentric rings in white and a central colorless eye, arranged vertically from rim to lower body, and two other large sections, placed side by side across bottom, of a cane in brown ground with meandering zigzags in white. On interior, broad horizontal groove on inside of lip below rim; on exterior, band of two parallel horizontal grooves on shoulder and two concentric circles on bottom.
Broken and repaired, with some minor chips and cracks; some dulling, pitting, and iridescent weathering, but also areas of high polish.
Rotary grinding marks on interior and exterior.

Most cast mosaic glass vessels of the late Hellenistic period are of a fairly simple open shape - usually hemispherical and shallow bowls or large plates such as those found at Canosa in southern Italy. This jar, with its ovoid body, turned in shoulder, flaring rim, and added coil base ring, would have required considerable skill to make. The large canes of glass, comprising spirals of opaque white glass in a translucent golden brown matrix, were also carefully arranged to provide a very eye-catching pattern. However, it is likely that glassworker deliberately chose the design in order to imitate luxury vessels carved in semiprecious stone, such as onyx and banded agate. The jar is a rare example of an intact vessel of this type, although fragments are quite numerous and widespread.