A FIVE-COLOUR OVERLAY MILKY WHITE-GLASS 'CHILONG' SNUFF BOTTLE QING DYNASTY, MID-18TH / EARLY 19TH CENTURY

of transparent ruby-red, sapphire-blue, pale yellow, semi-transparent turquoise-blue, pale olive-green and milky white glass, with one or two scattered air bubbles of various sizes, with a flat lip and recessed, slightly concave foot surrounded by a protruding flat footrim, carved as a single overlay with a continuous design of what appears to be five chilong, two formalized shou characters, and a formalized floral motif or another cloud; the tourmaline stopper with a vinyl collar

Ko Collection, Tianjin, 1982.
Collection of Gerd Lester.

Chinese Snuff Bottles from the Collection of Mary and George Bloch at the Galleries of Sydney L. Moss, Ltd., Sydney L. Moss Ltd., London, 1987, cat. no. 117 and exhibition poster.
Creditanstalt, Vienna, 1993.

Arthur Gadsby, 'Peking Glass Part II', Journal of the International Chinese Snuff Bottle Society, March 1979, p. 14, fig. 5 (image reversed).
Hugh Moss, Victor Graham and Ka Bo Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Mary and George Bloch Collection, vol. 5, Hong Kong, 2002, no. 987.

There is a minute chip to upper neck-rim; otherwise the snuff bottle is in good condition. The actual colours of the overlay are warmer and slightly deeper tone compared to the catalogue illustration.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

It is rare to find an overlay bottle of the mid-Qing period where the footrim is not in the overlay colour. It has been suggested that on courtly bottles the idea was established as fashionable by the production of the enamelled Guyue xuan group, where imperial white glass bottles were enamelled, sometimes over relief carving (see discussion under lot 232 in this sale). With this evolution in enamelling, the neck and base borders that had been standard during the early part of the reign gave way to simpler borders, which were finally eliminated completely. This bottle somehow echoes the relief-carved enamelled wares of the group, with its crisp, simple design on a white ground, devoid of decoration above or below.