Glass Onion

Glass onions were large hand blown glass bottles used aboard sailing ships to hold wine or brandy. For increased stability on rough seas, the bottles were fashioned with a wide-bottom shape to prevent toppling, thus making the bottles look somewhat onion-shaped.


Famous quotes containing the words glass and/or onion:

    “Vast chain of Being, which from God began,
    Natures aethereal, human, angel, man,
    Beast, bird, fish, insect! what no eye can see,
    No glass can reach; from Infinite to thee,
    From thee to Nothing!—”
    —Alexander Pope (1688–1744)

    “Let onion atoms lurk within the bowl,
    And, scarce suspected, animate the whole.”
    —Sydney Smith (1771–1845)