1840-1910

Details

**AN INCISED BRONZE SNUFF BOTTLE
1840-1910
Of flattened form with flat lip and flat foot, incised on both main sides with sinuous, coiled dragons pursuing flaming pearls amidst clouds, the narrow sides with raised oval panels incised with floral sprigs, flanked by flames above and below, the foot incised with an apocryphal mark in regular script, Shunzhi jiunian Cheng Rongzhang zhi (Made in the ninth year of the Shunzhi period by Cheng Rongzhang), coral stopper with silver collar
2 7/64 in. (5.4 cm.) high

Provenance

Robert Hall, London.

Literature

Robert Hall, Chinese Snuff Bottles, London, 1987, p. 127.

Exhibited

Robert Hall, London, "Chinese Snuff Bottles", October 1987, no. 67.
Canadian Craft Museum, Vancouver, 1992.

Special notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory and tortoiseshell. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

Lot Essay

This bottle is part of a group of incised bronze or brass bottles made by an artist who signed himself Cheng Rongzhang. They are mostly inscribed with apocryphal dates ranging from 1644 to 1653, the first decade of the reign of the Shunzhi emperor. Their bases tend to bear precise dates, and their shapes vary from rectangular to rounded ones, such as the present example. Most of them are decorated with slender, incised dragons (see R. Kleiner, Treasures from the Sanctum of Enlightened Respect, pp. 270-71, no. 228; and Zhongguo biyanhu zhenshang, p. 15 and no. 389). For one incised with a female figure on a terrace, see Moss, Graham and Tsang, The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle. The J & J Collection, no. 261.

For a reassessment of the Shunzhi bronze bottles, see H. Moss, "A Brief Update on Shunzhi Bronze Bottles and Ye Family Enameled Glass", JICSBS, Spring 2007.

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