Page 111 - Fine Chinese, Japanese and Buddhist Art September 28, 2018 Galerie Zacke

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A BURLWOOD SNUFF BOTTLE, QING Mouth, neck and lip: Short sprawling neck A SILVER INLAID HARDWOOD SNUFF A DUAN INKSTONE ‘DRAGON’ SNUFF Provenance: United Kingdom private
DYNASTY with flat top and small mouth BOTTLE, QING DYNASTY BOTTLE, 1760-1820, POSSIBLY IMPERIAL collection
Wood burl (possibly huamu, birch burl) Base: Tapered foot rim and flat oval base Carved hardwood with good patina and well The duan stone of pure quality and with
with good patina and expressive grain. Stopper: Matching stopper and spoon visible grain, neatly inlaid with silver wire. a good patina, smooth surface polish and Literature comparison: For a bottle of slightly
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China, 19 century Height of the bottle with stopper: 6,5 cm. China, 19 century neatly carved and incised decor in light relief different shape but similarly carved, see Hugh
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Width of the mouth: 6 mm. China, 1760-1820 Moss, Victor Graham and Ka Bo Tsang, The
During the mid- to late Qing dynasty, Width of the neck: 17 mm. Of elegant baluster form the bottle shows Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle, The J & J
burlwood snuff bottles seemed to have Weight: 23 grams two chrysanthemum flowers surrounded by Of flattened globular shape with tall neck, Collection, pp. 151-156, no. 84. For other
become popular as relatively inexpensive Condition: Excellent with two tiny nicks their tendrils and leaves. carved in low relief to the main side with a examples, see Pamela Friedman, Chinese
bottles for the growing private market as to foot coiling dragon in a medallion amidst cloud Snuff Bottles from the Pamela R. Lessing
the habit of taking snuff spread throughout Provenance: United Kingdom private Shape: Baluster scrolls, the narrow sides with lion-mask fixed- Friedman Collection, Hong Kong, 1990, no.
the empire. This example is related to that collection; old collector’s label to base Hollowing: Excellent ring handles, the backside left plain. 60, with ordinary and kui dragons; Hugh
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group of bottles by its material, but the indicates a purchase date of March 13 , Mouth, neck and lip: Short sprawling neck The shape and the distinctive mask and ring Moss, Chinese Snuff Bottles, London, 1976,
shape is a rare one for a wooden bottle 1969 with slanted lip and very large mouth handles, as well as the subject and style, no. 175, with dragons and inscription; and
and was presumably inspired by the spade Base: Round convex base with tapered foot identify it as one of a small group of bottles in Sotheby’s, London, 11 October 1974, lot
shaped jade bottles so popular during the Literature comparison: For an impressive rim this material which presumably all come from 172, with dragons, an inscription and the
second half of the Qing dynasty. example with an ivory neck and loop Stopper: Tourmaline stopper on green the same workshop. In fact, although this is a studio name Jingzhai (‘Studio of Veneration’);
handles for a cord, see Au Hang 1993, no. platelet small group, it contains the majority of snuff Alexander Brody, Old Wine into Old Bottles, A
It is often difficult to identify the species 238, where no. 239 is another, of the more Height of the bottle with stopper: 6,3 cm. bottles of Duan stone, which was not often Collector’s Commonplace Book, Hong Kong,
of tree from which a burl has been taken, typical later-Qing type having prominent Width of the mouth: 9 mm. used outside of the production of inkstones. 1993, p. 104, with dragons and an unusual
particularly in cut and polished examples, mask handles and a matching stopper. For Width of the neck: 13 mm. They are characterized by low-relief designs inscription in relief seal script: ‘Precious
but this has the appearance of birch two other burl-wood snuff bottles, see Weight: 22,5 grams of distinctive dragons, the distinguishing treasure [from the] Duan Stream’; Zhongguo
burl (huamu). Birch grew in Manchuria, Geng and Zhao, nos. 429 and 430. Condition: Excellent, with two tiny wire features of which are bulky haunches and Biyanhu Zhenshang, Hong Kong, 1992, no.
homeland of the Qing rulers. Burl wood sections missing and dents to two further short, multiple-spiked tails, set amidst clouds; 327, with kui and inscription.
was used frequently in China and was Auction result comparison: SNUFF BOTTLES wires or by kui dragons, often in the form of the
also used for making the typical shallow FROM THE MARY AND GEORGE BLOCH Provenance: United Kingdom private character long (‘dragon’). Auction result comparison: Fine Chinese Snuff
tea bowls used in Tibet and Mongolia. COLLECTION: PART VI. Sotheby’s, 27 MAY collection Bottles from the Holden Collection. Christies,
The material would have been available to 2013, HONG KONG, lot 153. (for a dated Shape: Flattened globular New York, 21 March 2000, lot 178. (for a
the Chinese throughout the Qing dynasty, example) SNUFF BOTTLES FROM THE 㶭ẋ䠔㛐⳴戨滣䂇⢢ Hollowing: Excellent related bottle)
and it is difficult to date many surviving MARY AND GEORGE BLOCH COLLECTION 䠔㛐岒炻列⤥⊭㻧炻䲳䎮㶭㘘炻䱦伶⳴戨 Mouth, neck and lip: Elongated sprawling
examples because they lack decoration, Part V. Bonham’s, 27 May 2012, HONG ᷕ⚳炻19ᶾ䲨 neck with convex top 1760军1820 ⸜攻䪗䠗滣䂇⢢炻⎗傥䁢⽉墥
dates, or inscriptions. The majority of burl- KONG, lot 92. (for a similar example, but ⑩䚠㤝Ἓ Base: Oval base with raised foot rim 䪗䠗䞛炻⊭㻧列⤥炻堐朊⸛㔜炻⃱㹹䴚䢐炻
wood snuff bottles were probably made lacking the matching stopper) 劙⚳䥩Ṣ㓞啷 Design, marks, school: ATTRIBUTED TO 晽ⶍ䳘䶣
from the mid-Qing dynasty onwards, and GUANGDONG PROVINCE AND PROBABLY ᷕ⚳炻1760-1820⸜
mainly for a non-Imperial market. A bottle 㶭ẋ䘕㛐滣䂇⢢ EstimateġEUR 200,- FROM A WORKSHOP IN GUANGZHOU ⑩䚠㤝⤥
such as this, however, could date from 㧡䗌ĩ⎗傥䁢䲭㛐ㆾ䘥㧢㛐Ī炻⊭㻧列⤥炻 Starting price EUR 100,- Height of the bottle: 5,7 cm. 劙⚳䥩Ṣ㓞啷
mid-Qing and have courtly connections. 䲳䎮㶭㘘 Width of the mouth: 6 mm.
For that period, we cannot rule out an ᷕ⚳炻IJĺᶾ䲨 Width of the neck: 15 mm. EstimateġEUR 500,-
Imperial product simply because of its ⑩䚠㤝Ἓ Weight: 44,5 grams Starting price EUR 250,-
common material. 劙⚳䥩Ṣ㓞啷 Condition: Excellent with only one tiny nick to
lip and some microscopic nibbles to the mask
Shape: Spade EstimateġEUR 300,- handles
Hollowing: Excellent Starting price EUR 150,-

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