Mary Jane Rathbun (1860-1943) worked for the United States Fish Commission and later at the United States National Museum in the Division of Marine Invertebrates

Biologist and ichthyologist Ida May Mellen (1877-1970) was an expert on fish diseases and worked at the New York Aquarium, 1916-1929. She wrote numerous books and articles about marine biology

The large jar, used for storing food and liquids, has a straight rim and rests on a flat base. It is decorated with gilded fishes and other sea creatures and drawings of a saint inside circles.