A CAMEO AGATE ‘MONKEY AND HORSE’ SNUFF BOTTLE, OFFICIAL SCHOOL, 18TH-19TH CENTURYChina. Well hollowed, of rounded square form, rising from an oval, concave foot to a straight neck with concave lip. The honey-brown inclusion skillfully utilized by the lapidary to depict a playful scene with a horse led by a monkey pulling its reins, another monkey perched on the horse’s back, all standing above a rock, the reverse plain to highlight the fine markings of the stone. The translucent bottle of a creamy pale-honey color with bands, shadings, and a vein of amber.Provenance: John O’Hara, Philadelphia, USA, who has collected snuff bottles for over 20 years. He has given seminars for the International Chinese Snuff Bottle Society (ICSBS) and bottles from his collection have been on exhibition at Drexel University, Philadelphia.Condition: Very good condition with minor old wear, a small nick to the mouth, minuscule nibbling here and there.Stopper: Agate with black platelet, bone spoonWeight: 60.0 gDimensions: Height including stopper 69 mm. Diameter neck 22 mm and mouth 7 mmIndividually, the monkey symbolizes cleverness and agility while the horse represents strength and speed. The depiction of a monkey on a horse’s back represents the rebus ‘Ma shang feng hou’ which may be translated as ‘May you receive a swift promotion to a high rank of office’. This popular motif would have been used to confer good wishes to ambitious individuals within officialdom.Auction resultparison:Type: Closely relatedAuction: Christie’s New York, 19 September 2013, lot 1234Price: USD 12,500 or approx.EUR 15,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: A cameo agate snuff bottle, official school, 1780-1850Expert remark:pare the closely related color, motif, and related form. Note the size (60 mm)十八至十九世紀焦糖瑪瑙《馬上封侯》鼻煙壺，或爲御用工坊中國。掏膛良好，直頸，削肩，橢圓形圈足。巧妙運用焦糖色內沁，雕刻一隻猴子拉韁牽馬，馬背上站著另一隻猴子。半透明的焦糖色瑪瑙，帶有條紋、陰影和琥珀色紋理。