event

QUAX Glass Duck Charms: The Jeep Easter Egg Hidden in Butler, PA’s Community Mosaic

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If you drive a Jeep, you may have found a rubber duck on your hood or door handle. In Butler, Pennsylvania, there are glass ones hiding in a wall.

Butler, PA Glass Rubber Duck Charm in the Community Mosaic on the side of the Historic Penn Theater

When we built the community mosaic for the Penn Theater in Butler, we tucked ducks into the design as an Easter egg. Most people walk past and see a colorful mural. Jeep people look closer, and they get the joke. The mosaic was unveiled during Steeples & Stacks Heritage Weekend, where visitors also took part in a public mosaic experience.

Glass Rubber Ducky in the Butler, PA Community Mosaic on the exterior of the Penn Theater

Why ducks in the Birthplace of the Jeep?

Butler is where the American Bantam Car Company designed and built the first Jeep prototype in 1940. Willys-Overland and Ford went on to mass-produce it for the war effort, but the story starts on Butler’s West End.

Jeep owners return every June for the Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival. Friday night, Jeeps line downtown Butler for the Jeep Invasion. The weekend continues at Cooper’s Lake Campground with off-road trails and a Jeep Playground obstacle course, mud pit included. Plan your trip through Visit Butler County.

QUAX Mystery Box Rubber Ducky Charm from the Jeep birthplace, Butler, PA

A town with that much Jeep history deserved a duck or two in its mosaic. Jeep ducking, the practice of leaving a rubber duck on another Jeep, started in 2020 and turned into a community tradition. Our ducks are glass.

What is a QUAX Mystery Box?

Every box hides one handmade glass duck, and you won’t know which until you open it. QUAX ducks are rubber-ducky charms formed in borosilicate glass by US glass artists and strung on a lariat lanyard. Clip one to your keys, your phone, or your trail pack.

  • Common Yellow: most of the flock
  • Rare Blue: turns up less often
  • Ultra Rare Purple: the one collectors chase
  • Secret Art Rare Mystery Ducks: one-of-a-kind artist pieces we keep off the product page on purpose
Sneak peek at some of the RARE QUAX Duck Charms that are hidden in the mystery boxes

The ducks in your box come from the same flock that landed in our Butler mosaic. They hopped the pond for the the community mosaic built at the International Festival of Glass in St. Helens, England, at The World of Glass. They were made by the same hands.

Rubber Ducky swimming in The Hotties at the World of Glass Museum in St. Helens, UK

A duck for the Jeep person in your life

A blind box gives them the unboxing, and a glass duck is a keepsake that nods to Jeep ducking without being left on a windshield. It also works as a stocking stuffer or a festival-season gift.

Open a box and see who’s inside → Shop QUAX Mystery Boxes

Butler, PA Community Mosaic from the Steeples and Stacks Festival 2026 - mounted on the exterior of the historic Penn Theater
Can you spot the three Rubber Duckies hiding in the mosaic mural?

FAQ

Why are there ducks in the Butler, PA mosaic?
They’re an Easter egg for Jeep fans, a nod to Jeep ducking and to Butler’s title as the Birthplace of the Jeep.

What are QUAX ducks made of?
Borosilicate glass, handmade by US glass artists.

Can I choose my duck?
No. Each box contains one random duck. Colors are Common Yellow, Rare Blue, and Ultra Rare Purple, plus a few Secret Art Rare ducks.

How do I carry or display it?
It’s strung on a lariat lanyard, so it works as a charm for keys, a phone, or a backpack.

Details of Ceramic Tiles created in collaboration with Jessica Liddell of Bella Mosaic for the Butler, PA Community Mosaic on the exterior of the historic Penn Theater
Ladle to represent the steel industry in Butler, PA – tile created in collaboration with Jessica Liddell of Bella Mosaic
Belleville International manufactures washers in Butler, PA – tile created in collaboration with Jessica Liddell of Bella Mosaic
Oil Derrick to represent the historic oil industry in Butler, PA – tile created in collaboration with Jessica Liddell of Bella Mosaic
Pullman Railcar in Butler, PA – tile created in collaboration with Jessica Liddell of Bella Mosaic

Lincoln artist organizes local marble hunt in conjunction with Lincoln Hot Glass artists

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Local artists from Lincoln Hot Glass are bringing treasure to you and going down in history at the same time. The United Nations has named 2022 The Year of Glass, and glass artists are making history with the world’s biggest marble treasure hunt by hiding their handmade marbles for you to find. Now, you can have the adventure of a lifetime and add some beautiful artwork to your collection. The hunt for the marble treasure is open to the public at no cost.

The “fresnel lens” marble turns images upside down!

Nebraska is home to many talented, locally and nationally recognized glass artists. Marc Kornbluh has been making and selling marbles to the international marble collecting community for close to 20 years. His marbles are in museums and private collections throughout the country, and one of his marbles resides in the permanent collection of the Sheldon Museum. “At Lincoln Hot Glass, we make a variety of marbles, from small memorial cremation marbles to giant globes. It’s the only place in hundreds of miles where you can learn to make marbles and other items on the torch,” notes owner Marc.

The “brain” is created with clear glass and fumes of silver and gold to create the beautiful colors inside.

Matt Losee is the lead instructor at Lincoln Hot Glass and enjoys working with those 16 and older to learn about working molten glass on the torch. “Glass marbles are pretty close to indestructible. They’re very durable. Unlike stone, wood, metal, oil paintings or other art, glass is chemically inert. It won’t oxidize and degrade or rot. In a million years, these marbles will look the same as they do now.”

Carrie Strope is a local glass artist and teaching artist who uses all forms of working in glass, from fused glass and mosaics to stained glass and torchworking. “We’re excited to be joining the World’s Biggest Marble Hunt during the International Year of Glass to help bring a fun, free, family-friendly activity to Nebraskans. It is exciting and engaging for even the youngest of marble hunters. 

The planetary marble made by Marc Kornbluh that was hidden in a space themed plant at the UN-L Arboretum.

We hope to inspire folks with the marbles they find and look forward to showing them how accessible it is to make your own marbles at Lincoln Hot Glass”, says Lincoln artist Carrie Strope. 

A couple of the glass artists that are joining the marble hunt and hiding marbles started out as students at Lincoln Hot Glass. Chris Apple started out taking an ornament class as a way to connect with his deceased Aunt, who was a glassblower. Soon after, he was taking every class the studio offered and realized he wanted to be at the studio more often. “Working with glass is a way for me to use my creative energies in a capacity that is not related to my creative day job. It’s meditative and therapeutic. Studio time is me time and is a great balance for my mental wellbeing.” 

Can you spot the mushroom marble made by Carrie Strope?

Another student turned renter, Doug Hanks says, “Glass, for me, is the perfect medium. Every piece is unique, and will last for generations. Where else can you balance lava on a lightsaber and make something beautiful?”

The many marbles being hidden throughout Nebraska use various techniques and are all original works of art. Some of the marbles are created with precious metals such as silver and gold while some of them are full of imagery created using small strands of glass or murrine, which are created by stacking many layers of glass and pulling it down to smaller patterns. If you’re interested in learning more about making marbles, Lincoln Hot Glass offers classes that teach you all of the steps in creating a marble that you could hide for others to find or for you to keep as your own treasure!!

Can you spot the mushroom marble that was hidden at the lake and only accessible by water?

Lincoln Hot Glass will be posting marble hunts specific to the Lincoln Area on their facebook page. Join the Nebraska artists listed below and The World’s Biggest Marble Hunt. You can join the hunt absolutely free!

A handful of the marbles being hidden for the marble hunt, created by Lincoln’s marble artists.

Participating Lincoln Artists:
Carrie Strope – https://calyxglass.com/
Marc Kornbluh – https://www.instagram.com/kornbluhglass/
Matt Losee – https://www.instagram.com/md_losee/  
Doug Hanks – https://www.instagram.com/hanxglassart/ 
Travis djBLAC – https://www.instagram.com/djblac/ 
Chris Apple – https://www.theapple.red/