Page 35 - Bonhams Chinese Scholar's Art March 2014

8057
A white nephrite lotus pod snuff bottle
1750-1820
Carved in the round as two lotus pods growing
from long curled stems beside a lotus flower
and two leaves, the veins of the leaves incised.
1 7/8in (4.8cm) high
$4,000 - 6,000

For additional examples of white nephrite lotus-
form snuff bottles that are dated similarly see
Hughes, The Chester Beatty Library, Dublin:
Chinese Snuff Bottles, Baltimore, 2009, no.
49, and Low, Chinese Snuff Bottles from the
Sanctum of Enlightened Respect III, Singapore,
2007, no. 42.

8058
An inside painted snuff bottle
Bi Rongjiu, 1913
Of compressed ovoid shape with a flat lip and
waisted neck, supported by a oval foot rim and
a shallowly recessed foot, with ring handles to
the side, the interior painted with figures in a
garden setting on one side, the other with a
landscape, with a seven character inscription
dated guichou (1913) and signed Rongjiu, with
a painted seal.
2 1/2in (6.3cm) high
$1,500 - 2,500

Provenance: 8058 (two views)
John Sparks, Ltd (according to label)

8059
An inside painted glass snuff bottle
Ye family, 1916
Of flattened ovoid shape tapering slightly
towards the foot, with a flat lip and high oval
foot rim surrounding a flat foot, with a raised
panel to the front and back, each side painted
with figures in architectural settings, one side
with a two-character inscription reading Qing
feng the reverse titled Huang yingfollowed by a
date of Bingchen signed Ye Zhongsan zuo with
a painted seal reading yin.
2 3/4in (7cm) high
$3,000 - 4,000

Both sides of the bottle illustrate scenes from
the collection of short stories Liaozhai Zhi Yi
by Pu Songling, first published in 1679. Ye
Zhongsan and his sons would often rely on
this popular collection of otherworldly tales as
inspiration for their snuff bottles. See Moss,
Graham and Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff
Bottles, Vol. 4, no. 645, for a discussion on Ye
Zhongsan and his sons.

8059 (two views)

Chinese Art from the Scholars Studio | 33