**A CARVED WHITE JADE SNUFF BOTTLE
Prospective purchasers are advised that several co… Read more
**A CARVED WHITE JADE SNUFF BOTTLE

1730-1820

Details
**A CARVED WHITE JADE SNUFF BOTTLE
1730-1820
Of well hollowed, flattened form with concave lip with incised gutter near the outer rim, and recessed, flat rounded-rectangular foot surrounded by a footrim, each main side carved in relief with a figure set in an oval, beaded frame, one, Liu Hai, with his three-legged toad, the other, showing Shi De with a besom and holding a pearl, the narrow sides with raised, scalloped, rounded-rectangular panels, coral stopper with gilt-bronze collar
1 15/16 in. (4.92 cm.) high
Provenance
Paul Champkins, London, 14 June 2000
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

Two features set this bottle apart from the norm: the extremely white color of the jade, flawless although with some internal flecking visible with transmitted light, and the extraordinary integrity of the ground plain, as flat and even as a mirror. The carving suggests top-quality Suzhou work, although not of the Zhiting School, but of the Zigang legacy, which found its technical peak in small plaques and other objects of the early Qing-dynasty.

The Two Immortals of Harmony and Unity (Hehe erxian) were believed to preside over harmonious marriages, and are usually depicted carrying a lotus (he) and a box (he), both puns on their names. The Hehe erxian have a confused iconography, often becoming mixed up with the legend of Han Shan and Shi De, two famous Tang-dynasty monks (see E. Werner, A Dictionary of Chinese Mythology, p. 158), who are typically shown carrying a fan and broom respectively, and with wide grins on their faces.

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