Page 59 - September 21 2021 Curtis collections snuff bottles Bonhams NYC

653
A SPINACH JADE BASKET-WEAVE SNUFF BOTTLE
1770-1870
Of spade shape with plain short cylindrical neck, very finely carved
in relief with a graduated basket-weave design to the body which
reduces in size primarily toward the foot which is formed from a
shallowly scooped oval, the dark green stone with some black flecking,
the lion-cub spinach jade stopper possibly original.
2 1/4in (5.8cm) high

$2,000 - 3,000
1770-1870年 碧玉雕柳編紋鼻煙壺

This bottle’s pattern, imitating basket weave, is derived from the
traditional practice of encasing pottery jars with woven or plaited
material for protection. Snuff bottles with a basket weave pattern
were fashioned from jade, glass, amber and rock crystal. See Hugh
Moss, Victor Graham and Ka Bo Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff
Bottles, The Mary and George Bloch Collection, Vol. Part 2, Quartz,
pp. 450-451, no. 347, the authors discuss this pattern of adornment,
suggesting it was a popular design for bottles made by the Imperial
workshops in the 18th and early 19th centuries.

See also Michael C. Hughes, Small Treasures: The Art Institute of
Chicago, Chinese Snuff Bottles, Hong Kong, 2015, pp. 58-59, no. 41,
for a similar example and further discussion of the group as a whole.

THE EMILY BYRNE CURTIS COLLECTION OF CHINESE SNUFF BOTTLES | 57