AN ENAMEL ON COPPER SNUFF BOTTLE

famille-rose and iron-red enamels on copper, of flattened ovoid form below a slightly everted mouth, supported on an oval foot, painted with a continuous scene of a boy riding a buffalo, the reverse with a maiden seated on rockwork below a meandering pine tree, set against a verdant mountain and lake landscape, with pendant lappets on the collar below a thin blue enamel scrolling border on the neck, the base inscribed with a four-character Qianlong nianzhi mark in blue enamel

Mrs. Honor Smith.
Sotheby's London, 5th December 1983, lot 248.
Robert Hall.

Patrick K. M. Kwok, 'The Joe Grimberg Collection of Chinese Snuff Bottles', Arts of Asia, November-December 1993, p. 93, no. 7.

The bottle is in good condition with the gilding on mouth almost entirely rubbed and some pitting to the enamel on the neck and foot. The red is less saturated than the print catalogue image suggests.
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 is, in many ways, representative of the marriage of Chinese and European influences on the enamelling of snuff bottles. While the subjects are clearly Chinese, the idyllic landscape in which they live is derived from European pastoral scenes, originally inspired by late 17th century French enamels. Moreover, the painting technique combines the illusionistic shading and washes established by European painters (as seen on the buffalo and the faces of the figures) with the strong contour lines so present in Chinese painting.

A pair of bottles featuring similar Chinese-subject pastoral scenes are illustrated by Michael C. Hughes, The Blair Bequest: Chinese Snuff Bottles from the Princeton University Art Museum, Hong Kong, 2002, pp. 248-249, no. 347.