216 - A ‘FAMILLE-ROSE’ PORCELAIN SNUFF BOTTLE JINGDEZHEN, 1830-1900

A ‘FAMILLE-ROSE’ PORCELAIN SNUFF BOTTLE JINGDEZHEN, 1830-1900 To Be Sold Without Reserve Of compressed apple shape with a waisted neck, flat lip and recessed, concave oval foot surrounded by a protruding, rounded, oval foot rim, moulded and enamelled with a continuous design of three butterflies and three branches of a fruiting peach tree all set on a turquoise, chicken-skin textured ground, the outer foot rim decorated with a formalized floral scroll in black on a pale blue ground, the foot inscribed with an apocryphal Qianlong nian zhi (‘Made during the Qianlong period’) in iron-red seal script on a turquoise ground, the lip gilt Height: 7.6cm Provenance: Gerd Lester, New York The Blanche B. Exstein Collection Christie’s, New York, The Blanche B. Exstein Collection of Fine Chinese Snuff Bottles, 21st March 2002, lot 67 Hugh Moss (HK) Ltd, 30th September 2008, (a copy of the original invoice available) Moulded porcelain bottles, made popular by the Court during the last decade of the Qianlong reign and a major Imperial staple of snuff-bottle production during the subsequent Jiaqing reign, continued in production throughout the nineteenth century. During the Daoguang period, however, very few genuine marked, Imperial bottles are known. There was, however, considerable production of often extremely well made and original designs that bore apocryphal Qianlong marks and were made, presumably for a non-Imperial market (for the Court, the correct reign mark would have been used). It seems obvious that as Imperial interest fell away in this type of bottle, to be replaced by a massive production in painted enamels on porcelain for the Court, the Jingdezhen potters carried on production for a private market and a growing foreign collector’s market but using the more saleable Qianlong reign mark. Although some of these later, apocryphally-marked moulded porcelains were derivative, taken mostly from late Qianlong or Jiaqing originals, many were quite inventive and of excellent quality, with subjects that never were produced in those earlier reigns. This is one of them, with a unique subject of peaches and butterflies (it cannot originally have been unique, of course, since they were moulded precisely so that they could be mass produced, but no other examples seem to be recorded). The peaches represent longevity, based on the legend of the Mother Goddess of the West, Xiwangmu, who grew the peaches of longevity in her gardens, while the character for butterfly also forms a rebus for longevity, making this a suitable birthday gift. The porcelain stopper imitating turquoise is very unusual, and it is conceivably the original, although ideally the spoon should be a little longer, suggesting it may not be For a similar bottle, see Sotheby’s New York, 25th October 1997, lot 342 Ω This Lot was imported outside of the UK, under the Temporary Admission scheme. 5% import VAT will be charged on the ‘hammer’ price and 20% VAT will be charged on the ‘buyer’s premium’. If proof of export outside of the UK can be provided for this item within 3 months of the sale date, then the VAT can be refunded. Please contact us for further details and shipping advice