A FLAWLESS ROCK CRYSTAL SNUFF BOTTLE

superbly hollowed, of bulbous rounded form resting on a countersunk base, rising to a short cylindrical neck, the ivory spoon carved as a hand bearing three jadeite bangles of lavender, apple-green and white color

The Estate of Edmund F. Dwyer.
Christie's London, 12th October 1987, lot 220.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, October-November 1984.

Newsletter of the Chinese Snuff Bottle Society, December 1971.
Architectural Digest, March-April 1972, p. 38.
JICSBS, Summer 1984, front cover.
In Focus, a publication of the Gemological Institute of America Alumni Association, Winter 1985-1986, front cover.

Patrick K. M. Kwok, 'The Joe Grimberg Collection of Chinese Snuff Bottles', Arts of Asia, November-December 1993, p. 96, no. 41.

Good condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The present bottle has a prestigious history, being the prize-winner at the Chinese Snuff Bottle Society Convention in 1971. It encapsulates the essence of purity, with its flawless, undecorated stone of paper-thin quality, as well as its impressively hollowed interior.

A similar bottle is illustrated by Clare Lawrence in Miniature Masterpieces from the Middle Kingdom: The Monimar Collection of Chinese Snuff Bottles, London, 1996, pp. 84-95, p. 41. Two other undecorated crystal bottles, from The J & J Collection, are illustrated in Hugh Moss, Victor Graham and Ka Bo Tsang, The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle, New York, 1993, Volume I, pp. 171-173, pls. 93-94. For an example of a crystal bottle fitted with a similar spoon bearing bangles, see John Gilmore Ford, Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Edward Choate O'Dell Collection, Baltimore, 1982, no. 21.