For a discussion of this problematic group see Hugh Moss, Victor Graham and Ka Bo Tsang, The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle, The J & J Collection, p. 45, no. 8. The authors note: "Small nephrite sculptures of this type date back to the Han Dynasty at least, and they gradually evolved over the centuries into one of the most appealing sculptural art forms in China. Without the hollowing this cicada might equally have been a Ming or even pre-Ming work of art intended primarily as intimate sculpture to be delighted in visually and fondled meditatively, but also to double as a functional object such as a scroll weight."

The fact that the mouth of this example runs across an area of carving suggests that this bottle was later adapted as a snuff bottle, probably at some point after the 1640's

The cicada symbolizes immortality because of its cyclical death and rebirth