AN INSIDE-PAINTED CRYSTAL SNUFF BOTTLE

SIGNED MA SHAOXUAN, DATED GUIMAO YEAR (1903)

Details

AN INSIDE-PAINTED CRYSTAL SNUFF BOTTLE
SIGNED MA SHAOXUAN, DATED GUIMAO YEAR (1903)
The bottle is decorated on one side with a scene of a boy attempting to prevent a cat from catching a pigeon beneath an inscription reading 'in the brush style of Bada shanren (Zhu Da)'. The reverse is inscribed with a poem entitled 'An Impromptu Poem Composed in Spring,' describing the joy of excursions in spring time, followed by the artist's name and dated to the 7th month of 1903 in the capital and the seal of the artist.
2 ¼ in (5.7 cm.) high, stone stopper

Provenance

Richard Law Collection.
Robert Kleiner, London, 2011.
Ruth and Carl Barron Collection, Belmont, Massachusetts, no. 5252.

Brought to you by

Margaret Gristina

mgristina@christies.com +1 212 636 2180

Lot Essay

The subject matter on this bottle, depicting a boy attempting to wrest a pigeon out of the jaws of a cat, is highly unusual. The same scene can be found on an inside painted snuff bottle by Ma Shaoxuan, with two confronting cats on the reverse, sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 29-30 October 1995, lot 581.

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