A CARVED YELLOW-GLAZED 'DRAGON' SNUFF BOTTLE, ATTRIBUTED TO WANG BINGRONG China, Jingdezhen kilns, circa 1820-1870. The outer wall of the double-walled bottle is neatly carved in openwork and reticulation with a four-clawed dragon chasing a flaming pearl in high relief against a continuous pierced background of neatly incised clouds and flames. The inner wall (and snuff container) is molded.

Provenance: Collection particulière dans le département Eure-et-Loir, France.
Condition: Excellent condition with some old wear and microscopic nibbling and glaze flaking. The black enameling to the pupils of the dragon has flaked off over time.

Stopper: Porcelain stopper (matching)
Weight: 57.8 g
Dimensions: Height including stopper 70 mm. Diameter neck 16 mm and mouth 6 mm.

The recessed base carved with an apocryphal four-character mark Qianlong nianzhi.

Wang Bingrong, active during the Daoguang and Xianfeng periods, was one of the finest of a small group of independent ceramicists in Jingdezhen of the period. At that time, the porcelain industry initiated carving on snuff bottles as a diversification from using earlier practices of molding. The uniformity and depth of the reticulation between the outer and inner layers, as exemplified by the present lot, can only be achieved by careful and steady carving.

Literature comparison:
Dragons were among Wang's most popular designs, although this particular composition is arguably among his rarer works. Compare a related, yellow-glazed snuff bottle, illustrated by H. Moss, V. Graham and K.B. Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles. The Mary and George Bloch Collection. Vol.6. Part 3. Arts of the Fire, Hong Kong, 2008, pp. 771-773, no. 1357. For two further 'dragon' snuff bottle examples, in yellowish-cream glaze and in green-glaze, respectively, see Bob C. Stevens, The Collector's Book of Snuff Bottles, New York, 1994, p. 93, nos. 263 and 265.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams Hong Kong, 4 June 2015, lot 8
Price: HKD 312,500 or approx. EUR 43,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A carved yellow-glazed 'dragon' snuff bottle, Wang Bingrong seal mark, circa 1820-1870
Expert remark: Compare the near identical form, motif, glaze, and manner of molding and carving. Note the different seal mark.



黃釉雕刻龍紋鼻烟壺，或爲王炳榮
中國，景德鎮，約1820-1870年。鼻烟壺有雙層壁，外壁鏤空雕刻並浮雕四爪雲龍戲珠。内壁堆塑。

來源：法國 Eure-et-Loir省私人收藏。
品相：品相極佳，有一些磨損和細微磕損和釉層剝落。龍眼上的黑色琺瑯隨著時間的推移已經剝落。

壺蓋：陶瓷
重量：57.8 克
尺寸：高 （含蓋）70 毫米，頸部直徑16 毫米及瓶口直徑6 毫米

圈足内四字偽款“乾隆年製“。

王炳榮活躍於道光咸豐年間，是景德鎮當時製陶家中的佼佼者。當時，陶瓷鼻烟壺剛剛開始利用雕刻工藝。以本拍品為例，內外層網紋十分均勻，必須細緻、穩健地進行操作。

文獻比較：
龍是王炳榮最受歡迎的設計之一，但這個特殊的構圖可以說是他比較稀少的作品之一。比較一件相關的黃釉鼻烟壺，見Hugh Moss、Victor Graham 和曾嘉寶，《A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Mary and George Bloch Collection》，卷三，第三部分，〈Arts of the Fire〉，香港，2008年，頁771-773，編號1357。另外兩個龍形鼻烟壺的例子，分別是黃釉和綠釉，見Bob C. Stevens，《The Collector's Book of Snuff Bottles（《鼻烟壺收藏手冊》）》，紐約，1994年，頁93，編號263和265。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：香港邦瀚斯，2015年6月4日，lot 8
價格：HKD 312,500（相當於今日EUR 43,500）
描述：大約1820-1870年黃釉雕刻龍紋鼻烟壺，或爲王炳榮
專家評論：比較幾乎相同的外型、主題、釉面和堆塑雕刻風格。請注意印不同。