76 - A COPPER-RED AND UNDERGLAZE-BLUE PORCELAIN SNUFF BOTTLE JINGDEZHEN, 1810-1880

A COPPER-RED AND UNDERGLAZE-BLUE PORCELAIN SNUFF BOTTLE JINGDEZHEN, 1810-1880 To Be Sold Without Reserve Of squat, cylindrical form with a waisted neck and recessed, flat, circular foot surrounded by a protruding, convex circular foot rim, painted with a continuous design of a camel being led towards a gate in Beijing, the gate inscribed Erligou (Two-mile ditch) 二里 溝 Height: 4.1cm Provenance: Potter’s Gallery, Vancouver, prior to 1970 The Meriem Collection Christie’s, New York, 19th September 2007, lot 644, part lot Hugh Moss (HK) Ltd, 22nd October 2007, (a copy of the original invoice available) The sign above the gate identifies it as one in Beijing. The bactrian camel was the beast of burden which was used by traders to ply the Silk Route to reach the he eager markets of Central Asia, Samarkand, Persia and Syria. The two-humped Bactrian camel was known in China as early as the Han dynasty, having been brought from Central Asia and Eastern Turkestan as tribute. Its ability to survive the hardships of travel, including desert crossings was soon recognized and Imperial camel herds were established under the administration of a special bureau. These Imperial camel herds, numbering several thousand, were used for a range of state duties, including the provision of a military courier service for the Northern Frontier. Camels were not only prized as resilient beasts of burden; their hair was also used to produce a cloth, which, then as now, was admired for its lightness and warmth Ω This Lot was imported from outside of the UK, under the Temporary Admission regime 5% import VAT will be charged on the ‘hammer” and 20% VAT will be charged on the ‘buyer’s premium