.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
The inscription may be translated as 'Almost a lake of autumn water, a pavilion in the mountains'.
This bottle is made from Duan stone, the material that is highly valued by scholars and most often made into inkstones. Because of this literati connection, it is not surprising that the subject depicted is typical of literati painting - an open pavilion set in an idyllic landscape, an ideal place for meditation, meeting with other scholars or indulging in scholarly pursuits in the tranquility of the countryside. The inscription which describes the scene, is superbly carved on the Duan stone, to give the impression of swift brushstrokes in ink on paper, as would have been practised by a calligrapher.
Clues to both the identity of the carver and the date of this bottle are found on another, of similar form but in green Duan stone, where an identical inscription appears; see Robert W. L. Kleiner, Chinese Snuff Bottles from the Collection of John Ault, no. 90. The Ault bottle is dated to the wuzi year (corresponding to 1768 or 1828) and is signed by the carver Qiaoyuan, and there is little doubt that both bottles are by the same hand.
Cf. another Duan stone snuff bottle from the J&J Collection, illustrated by Moss et. al., The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle, New York, 1993, vol. 1, no. 84.
This bottle is made from Duan stone, the material that is highly valued by scholars and most often made into inkstones. Because of this literati connection, it is not surprising that the subject depicted is typical of literati painting - an open pavilion set in an idyllic landscape, an ideal place for meditation, meeting with other scholars or indulging in scholarly pursuits in the tranquility of the countryside. The inscription which describes the scene, is superbly carved on the Duan stone, to give the impression of swift brushstrokes in ink on paper, as would have been practised by a calligrapher.
Clues to both the identity of the carver and the date of this bottle are found on another, of similar form but in green Duan stone, where an identical inscription appears; see Robert W. L. Kleiner, Chinese Snuff Bottles from the Collection of John Ault, no. 90. The Ault bottle is dated to the wuzi year (corresponding to 1768 or 1828) and is signed by the carver Qiaoyuan, and there is little doubt that both bottles are by the same hand.
Cf. another Duan stone snuff bottle from the J&J Collection, illustrated by Moss et. al., The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle, New York, 1993, vol. 1, no. 84.