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Lot Essay
Although unsigned, this bottle can be confidently attributed to the master glass-carver, Li Junting, who is believed to have worked at Yangzhou and was one of the most important and innovative of all Qing glass-carvers. He is also one of the few we can identify by name.
A white overlay blue glass bottle in the Mary and George Bloch Collection establishes that one of his art names was Junting, previously thought to be the name of a pavilion; see Moss, Graham, Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles, Vol. 5, Glass, no. 1021. The seal form of the name Li appears alone on several bottles, including one sold in our London rooms, 12 October 1987, lot 307, which is signed Lishi. An important glass vase sold in our New York rooms, 22 March 1991, lot 504, is also signed Lishi, and bears the seal Li, and is inscribed on the base Weishi chenwan, "For the precious enjoyment of Weishi." This vase, along with other wares bearing the name Weishi, establishes this as another of Li's names. Other works attributable to Li include two further bottles from the J & J Collection, nos. 402 and 403, illustrated by Moss, Graham, Tsang, The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle. The J & J Collection. The fact that he made various vessels for his own use and assumed a number of names suggests that Li may have been either a member of the scholar class himself, or, more likely, a well-educated artist closely associated with them.
Li's bottles are among the finest of the low-relief works of the Yangzhou school, and this superb example is no exception. The figure of Liu Hai is endowed with tremendous presence. Liu Hai is the immortal associated with commercial success. He is nearly always portrayed with his three-legged toad and cash, and his depiction here conveys a wish for prosperity. The three-legged toad itself has origins in the ancient mystical realm, representing immortality. It was only in later Chinese art that it was associated with Liu Hai. Here, Liu has just thrown the three-legged toad and his string of cash in the air. He crouches dynamically with arms outstretched, confident of his juggling.
A red overlay glass bottle carved with a similar design and of similar shape is in the collection of Denis Low, and illustrated by R. Kleiner, Treasures from the Sanctum of Enlightened Respect, p. 146, no. 126. See, also, three red overlay glass bottles attributed to Li Junting carved with similar figural designs, illustrated by Moss, Graham, Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles, Vol. 5, Glass, pp. 745-50, nos. 1032-34.
A white overlay blue glass bottle in the Mary and George Bloch Collection establishes that one of his art names was Junting, previously thought to be the name of a pavilion; see Moss, Graham, Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles, Vol. 5, Glass, no. 1021. The seal form of the name Li appears alone on several bottles, including one sold in our London rooms, 12 October 1987, lot 307, which is signed Lishi. An important glass vase sold in our New York rooms, 22 March 1991, lot 504, is also signed Lishi, and bears the seal Li, and is inscribed on the base Weishi chenwan, "For the precious enjoyment of Weishi." This vase, along with other wares bearing the name Weishi, establishes this as another of Li's names. Other works attributable to Li include two further bottles from the J & J Collection, nos. 402 and 403, illustrated by Moss, Graham, Tsang, The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle. The J & J Collection. The fact that he made various vessels for his own use and assumed a number of names suggests that Li may have been either a member of the scholar class himself, or, more likely, a well-educated artist closely associated with them.
Li's bottles are among the finest of the low-relief works of the Yangzhou school, and this superb example is no exception. The figure of Liu Hai is endowed with tremendous presence. Liu Hai is the immortal associated with commercial success. He is nearly always portrayed with his three-legged toad and cash, and his depiction here conveys a wish for prosperity. The three-legged toad itself has origins in the ancient mystical realm, representing immortality. It was only in later Chinese art that it was associated with Liu Hai. Here, Liu has just thrown the three-legged toad and his string of cash in the air. He crouches dynamically with arms outstretched, confident of his juggling.
A red overlay glass bottle carved with a similar design and of similar shape is in the collection of Denis Low, and illustrated by R. Kleiner, Treasures from the Sanctum of Enlightened Respect, p. 146, no. 126. See, also, three red overlay glass bottles attributed to Li Junting carved with similar figural designs, illustrated by Moss, Graham, Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles, Vol. 5, Glass, pp. 745-50, nos. 1032-34.