AN INSIDE-PAINTED GLASS ‘FISH AND INSECTS’ SNUFF BOTTLE, BY ZHOU LEYUAN, CHINA, DATED 1890

Expert's note
: According to Hugh Moss, “Zhou Leyuan began to paint this subject of fish and insects with a grassy rock bank quite early in his career, but most of the subject date from 1891 and 1892, the last two full years of production when it obviously became a popular part of his repertoire. Although Zhou repeated subjects, he never repeated compositions, every single bottle being re-thought as a work of art, unlike most of his contemporary artists who were largely decorative and repeated both subjects and compositions frequently. This is the form the subject generally takes in these later years, with the grassy bank wrapped around the bottle, but this is an early version of the classic subject.”

Of flattened form, the rounded rectangular body supported on a rimmed oval foot, rising to a slightly flared cylindrical neck with a flat lip. Powerfully painted bold rocks next to a meandering stream with some celestial eye goldfish and a catfish, and buzzing dragonflies and beetles above.


Inscription:
To one side, signed ‘Zhou Leyuan’ and dated ‘In the first Autumn month of 1890’. One red seal, ‘Yuanyin’.


Provenance:
Hugh Moss Ltd., Hong Kong, November 1997. Collection of Dr. Elsa R. Graser, Baltimore, USA, acquired from the above. Collection of Cynthia G. Locke, inherited from the above and thence by descent. The base with an old collector’s label, ‘3445’. A copy of the original invoice from Hugh Moss Ltd., Hong Kong, dated 8 November 1997, stating a purchase price of USD 5,000 or approx.
EUR 8,800
(converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing), accompanies this lot. Also with a copy of a letter written and signed by Hugh Moss, addressed to Elsa Graser, dated 10 November 1997, noting that Zhou Leyuan is Moss's favorite inside painting artist and in his opinion “
incredibly better than most of the others
.” Hugh Moss (b. 1943) is an author, dealer, artist, lifelong collector, and enthusiast of Chinese art, and the foremost authority on Chinese snuff bottles. Elsa R. Graser was a teacher of Latin and English and one of the first women on the faculty of the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute. An avid collector of snuff bottles, she served as editor of the Journal of the International Chinese Snuff Bottle Society. Her daughter Cynthia Graser Locke (1923-2019) also collected snuff bottles and lived in Duxbury, Massachusetts.

Condition:
Very good condition with minor wear and slight fading of colors and seal.

Stopper: Aquamarine, neatly carved in ‘Beijing’ style in the shape of an official’s hat, complete with integral finial and collar
Weight: 32.8 g
Dimensions: Height including stopper 68 mm. Diameter neck 15 mm and mouth 6 mm.


Zhou Leyuan
is the founder of the popular Beijing school of painting. His career spanned the period from 1881 to 1893. Every single artist of the first phase of the school owed a considerable debt to Zhou, and most began their careers by copying his style and signing his name. Some even devoted most of their careers to producing copies of his work.
Hugh Moss has described Zhou Leyuan as “the single most important artist in the entire field of inside-painted snuff bottles”.


Auction result comparison:

Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams Hong Kong, 28 November 2011, lot 4
Price: HKD 100,000 or approx.
EUR 16,500
adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An inside-painted glass 'Shen Zhou inspired' snuff bottle, Zhou Leyuan, the Studio of Thirty-six Memorials, probably Beijing, dated 1891
Expert remark: Compare the closely related composition, form, and size (6.89 cm).


Auction result comparison:

Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams Hong Kong, 25 May 2011, lot 121
Price: HKD 84,000 or approx.
EUR 14,000
adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An inside-painted glass 'goldfish' snuff bottle, Zhou Leyuan, dated 1890
Expert remark: Compare the closely related composition, form, and size (6.2 cm).




1890
年周樂元款內畫《蜻蜓與魚》料器鼻煙壺


呈扁平狀，圓角長形壺身，壺口平，圓柱形頸，橢圓形足。蜿蜒的溪流旁邊有一岩石，溪中可見金魚等小魚，石上方有飛舞的蜻蜓和甲蟲。


專家注釋：
Hugh Moss曾說：“周樂元在他的職業生涯很早就開始畫草岩岸邊的魚蟲題材，但大部分題材都是從1891年和1892年開始的，最後整整兩年的創作顯然已經成為了 他的作品中很受歡迎的一部分。儘管重複主題，但他從不重複構圖，每一個瓶子都是一件藝術品，不像他的大多數當代藝術家那樣，他們主要是裝飾性的，並且經常重複主題和構圖。 這是晚年採用的主題形式。而環繞著青草，則是傳統主題的早期版本。”


款識：
庚寅年秋周樂元作


來源：
香港Hugh M. Moss Ltd.藝廊，1997年11月；美國巴爾的摩Elsa R. Graser博士收藏，購於上述藝廊；Cynthia G. Locke私人收藏，繼承並保存至今。底部有收藏標籤，可見 ‘3445’字樣。隨附香港Hugh Moss Ltd.藝廊1997年11月8日出具的發票複印件，售價USD 5,000 相當於
EUR 8,800
(根據通貨膨脹率)。另附一份Hugh Moss1997年11月10日寫給 Elsa Graser的信的複印件，記錄了周樂元是Moss最喜歡的鼻煙壺內畫藝術家之一，Moss認爲 “
incredibly better than most of the others
（比絕大多數藝術家都出色）
.” Hugh Moss (出生於 1943年) 是一位作者、經銷商、藝術家、終身收藏家、中國藝術愛好者，中國鼻煙壺研究界的權威。Elsa R. Graser 曾是一位拉丁文與英文教師，是巴爾的摩理工學院第一批女性教員之一。她熱衷於收藏鼻煙壺，曾擔任《國際中國鼻煙壺學會會刊》的編輯。她的女兒Cynthia Graser Locke (1923-2019年) 住在美國馬薩諸塞州達克斯伯裡，也收藏鼻煙壺。

品相：
狀況極好，有輕微磨損，略有褪色。

壺蓋：海藍寶石呈官帽狀
重量：32.8 克
尺寸：含壺蓋高68 毫米. 頸部直徑15 毫米 and 壺口直徑 6 毫米.


周樂元
是京派內畫鼻煙壺的創始人，主要活動於1881年至1893年。很多藝術家都曾學習過周先生的風格。 有些人甚至一直模仿他的作品。Hugh Moss將周樂元稱為“整個內畫鼻煙壺領域最重要的藝術家”。


拍賣結果比較：

形制：非常相近
拍賣：香港邦瀚斯，2011年11月28日，lot 4
價格：HKD 100,000（相當於今日
EUR 16,500
）
描述：玻璃內畫仿沈周山水鼻煙壺，周樂元，三十六疏齋，擬北京，1891年作
專家評論：比較非常相近的外形和尺寸(6.89 釐米)。


拍賣結果比較：

形制：非常相近
拍賣：香港邦瀚斯，2011年11月28日，lot 4
價格：HKD 84,000（相當於今日
EUR 14,000
）
描述：玻璃內畫魚藻圖鼻煙壺，周樂元，1890年作
專家評論：比較非常相近的外形和尺寸(6.2 釐米)。