SIGNED YE ZHONGSAN, DATED DINGYOU YEAR (1897)

The subject of a crane resting beneath a pine tree was one that was most likely inspired by Zhou Leyuan, whose works Ye admired. Another bottle by Ye with this subject on one side, from the same year and with the use of the blue palette, is illustrated by Moss, Graham, Tsang in A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles, the Mary and George Bloch Collection, Volume 4, Part I, Hong Kong, 2000, pp. 212-213, no. 513, where it is noted that “1897 was a fruitful year for Ye Zhongsan. Confident in his style, obviously attracting a growing clientele and broadening his range of subjects, he seems to have become an established artist among the small group who followed Zhou Leyuan...”