AN INSCRIBED SAPPHIRE-BLUE OVERLAY GLASS SNUFF BOTTLE, YANGZHOU SCHOOL, CHINA, 1800-1880

Published:
Wang & Co., One Man’s Choice II, Beijing, 2009, page 24-25, number 22. The publication confirms the attribution and dating above.

Exhibited:
The International Chinese Snuff Bottle Society Convention, Dublin, Ireland, 20-24 October 2009


Inscriptions:
To one side, above the boy, ‘chu wu ni er bu ran’ (untainted though having grown from mud) one seal, ‘chen xin ru shui’ (the heart of your humble servant is as pure as water). To the other side, ‘tong xin zhi yan’ (language of the same hearts), one seal, ‘bing hu’ (icy bottle).

Of flattened spherical form with a flat lip and sapphire-blue oval foot rim surrounding a flat recessed base. Exquisitely carved through the outer sapphire-blue layer to the translucent milky-white body with a boy holding up a lotus bud in a sampan floating along a lotus pond. Above the boy is the inscription in Xiao Zhuan (Qin-dynasty seal script). The other side is similarly decorated with a Taihu rock and flowering orchids above a miniature grass planter on its stand as well as a Yixing pottery teapot and a teacup, all below butterflies hovering above and another inscription. The sides are carved with animal masks suspending mock ring handles.


Provenance:
A private collection in France. Wang & Co., Beijing, October 2009. A private collection in the United Kingdom, acquired from the above for USD $12,000 or c.
EUR 16,000
(converted and adjusted for inflation) according to a short note by the previous owner, of which a copy accompanies this lot. Wang & Co. is a noted gallery for Chinese antiques and works of art based in Beijing, run by Dick Wang, who had previously worked as an expert for Chinese art at Sotheby’s in New York and London.

Condition:
Good condition with minor wear and manufacturing irregularities, occasional light scratches, the foot rim with a minute old fill (1 x 3 mm), possibly inherent to manufacture.

Stopper: Glass in imitation of coral
Weight: 34.7 g
Dimensions: Height incl. stopper 61 mm, Diameter neck 15 mm and mouth 5 mm


Expert’s note:
This bottle belongs to a group of similarly made and carved overlay bottles that may have been ordered by patrons of the scholar-official class. The composition is painterly as well as scholastic, and the execution is demonstrative of complete mastery of the glass carving skills. The first inscription is a line from Ai Lion Shuo (Ode to the Lotus) by Zhou Dunyi (1017-1073). It compares the beauty of the lotus flower that grows unblemished from mud on the bottom of a pond to virtues men ought to possess. The seal ‘chen xin ru shui’ comes from the Biography of Zheng Chong in the Book of Han. Zheng was head of chancery in the court of Liu Xin who enjoyed the confidence of the Emperor until he began having problems with the Empress Dowager Fu and her court favorite Dong Xian. Zheng was in high demand as an official, but after falling from favor, the Emperor accused Zheng of embezzlement because of his fame. Zheng replied, ‘chen men ru shi, chen xin ru shui’ (It is like a bazaar outside my door, but my heart is as pure as water). The seal ‘bing hu’ is an abbreviation of the last line of the famous four-line poem by Wang Changling (690-756): ‘yi pian bing xin zai yu hu’ (my heart is as bright as crystal ice in a jar of jade).


Literature comparison:

Compare a related green overlay glass snuff bottle with a similar scene, illustrated in Hugh Moss, Victor Graham, and Ka Bo Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Mary and George Bloch Collection, vol. 5, part 3, no. 1031.


Auction result comparison:

Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams New York, 17 March 2014, lot 8003
Price: USD 25,000 or approx.
EUR 29,500
converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A blue overlay white glass snuff bottle, Yangzhou school, 1800-1840
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form, sapphire-blue overlay with similar boating scene, and animal masks with mock handles. Note the size (57 mm).


Auction result comparison:

Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams Hong Kong, 28 November 2011, lot 127
Price: HKD 275,000 or approx.
EUR 44,500
converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An inscribed sapphire-blue glass overlay ‘a thousand volume of books’ snuff bottle, Songtai, probably Yangzhou, 1810-1880
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form, sapphire-blue overlay (albeit depicting a different subject), and animal masks with mock handles. Note the size (53 mm).




1800-1880
年揚州派涅白地套寶石藍蘭草紋鼻煙壺


扁平壺身，直頸，溜肩，雙環輔首，豐胸，寶石藍色圈足。涅白地，套寶藍色料，一面精美雕刻著一個男孩，坐在船上，手中捧著一朵蓮花。一面藍寶石料雕刻假山蘭草，有微型盆景以及宜興陶壺和茶杯，蘭草上面有蝴蝶盤。


出版：
Wang & Co.，《One Man’s Choice II》，北京，2009年，第24-25頁，圖 22。確認流派與上述製作日期。

展覽
：
《
The International Chinese Snuff Bottle Society Convention》，愛爾蘭都柏林，2009年10月20-24日。


款識：
出污泥而不染，印“稱心如意”；同心之言，印“冰壺”。


來源
：
法國私人收藏；Wang & Co.藝廊，北京，2009年10月；英國私人收藏，購於上述藝廊USD $12,000 或相當於
EUR 16,000
(根據通貨膨脹)，隨附藏家附言副本。 Wang & Co. 是一家位於北京的著名中國古董和藝術品藝廊，由Dick Wang經營，他曾在紐約和倫敦蘇富比拍賣行擔任中國藝術專家。
品相：
狀況極佳，僅有輕微磨損，局部輕微劃痕。足緣有一個舊修補 (1 x 3厘米)，可能是製造時就固有的。

壺蓋：仿珊瑚料器
重量：34.7 克
尺寸：總高 61 毫米，頸部直徑15 毫米，壺口5 毫米


文獻比較：

比較一件圖紋相近的套綠料玻璃鼻煙壺 ，見Hugh Moss，Victor Graham和Ka Bo Tsang，《A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Mary and George Bloch Collection》，卷5，第三部分，編號1031。


拍賣結果比較：

形制：非常相近
拍賣：紐約邦瀚斯，2014年3月17日，lot 8003
價格：USD 25,000（相當於今日
EUR 29,500
）
描述：1800-1840年揚州白地套藍料鼻煙壺
專家評論：比較非常相近的外形、套藍料、遊船場景，以及側邊輔面環。請注意尺寸 (57毫米)。


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 127
價格：HKD 275,000（相當於今日
EUR 44,500
）
描述：白套藍玻璃萬卷書圖鼻煙壺，松苔，或揚州，1810-1880年
專家評論：比較非常相近的外形、套藍料 (儘管不同主題) ，以及側邊輔面環。請注意尺寸 (53毫米)。