A FINE AND RARE WHITE OVERLAY BLUE GLASS SNUFF BOTTLE

1760-1850

Details

A FINE AND RARE WHITE OVERLAY BLUE GLASS SNUFF BOTTLE
1760-1850
The white overlay is carved with a continuous design of three magpies perched amid branches of flowering prunus and pine and a clump of bamboo. The overlaid tablet by the bamboo is incised with the inscription 'The Three Friends of Winter'.
3 in. (7.78 cm.) high, stopper

Provenance

Sold at Christie's, New York, 3-4 November 1977, lot 291
Hugh M. Moss Ltd.
The J & J Collection; sold at Christie's New York, 30 March 2005, lot 12

Literature

Moss, Graham, Tsang, The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle. The J & J Collection, New York/Tokyo, 1993, vol. II, no. 386

Exhibited

Christie's New York, 1993
Empress Place Museum, Singapore, 1994
Museum fur Kunsthandwerk, Snuff Bottles from China. The J & J Collection, Frankfurt am Main, Germany, 1996-1997
The Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle: The J & J Collection, London, 1997
Naples Museum of Art, Florida, 2002
Portland Museum of Art, Oregon, 2002
National Museum of History, The Miniature World: An exhibition of snuff bottles from the J & J Collection, Taipei, 2002
Poly Art Museum, The Art of Chinese Snuff Bottle: Selected Snuff Bottle Collection of James Li, Beijing, 2003, p. 117

Brought to you by

Ruben Lien

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rlien@christies.com +852 2978 6735

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Lot Essay

As a rule, overlay bottles consist of darker colours set against a lighter ground, so bottles with a light-coloured overlay are the exception, and the present bottle is a spectacular example of this rare group. Its elegant and unusual form is enhanced by a well-carved design in opaque white on opaque blue. The three birds are particularly well laid out, and their overall effect, each reacting to the others, gives the scene a sense of movement which imparts great vitality to the whole design.

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