A BLUE AND WHITE PORCELAIN 'INDIAN LOTUS' SNUFF BOTTLE MARK AND PERIOD OF DAOGUANG

Sotheby's London, 6th June 1988, lot 14.

Robert Kleiner, Boda Yang, and Clarence F. Shangraw, Chinese Snuff Bottles: A Miniature Art from the Collection of George and Mary Bloch, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, 1994, cat. no. 170.
National Museum of Singapore, Singapore, 1994-1995.

Hugh Moss, Victor Graham and Ka Bo Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Mary and George Bloch Collection, vol. 6, Hong Kong, 2007, no. 1291.

Surface scratches from use and the occasional small glaze bubble, part of the original firing process.
"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."

This is one of the uncompressed forms of the mid-to late-Qing period, a meiping 梅瓶 (‘prunus-blossom vase’), long popular for imperial snuff bottles. The scrolling-lotus design had been popular on ceramics since the early Ming dynasty. It evolved constantly; imperial ceramics of the early eighteenth century were much inspired by early-fifteenth-century products, so that evolution could also recapitulate beginning stages for a time. What is seen here is a point in that evolution frozen in the Daoguang period. If one looks back only as far as the late Qianlong or early Jiaqing reign, probably represented by lot 138 in the present sale, the increasing formalisation of the design here is obvious. On that example, the vine is a series of continuous ‘S’ curves from which flowers grow to fill the empty spaces. By that time the leaves had already been reduced to a pattern of simplified curlicues growing from alternate sides of the stem, but here the whole design has become even more stylised. The flower heads, though still much the same, are set in a neat pattern around the body, the ‘S’-shaped stems have joined to form panels in which the flower heads float, barely connected to the stems, and the leaves form a regular pattern to fill any left-over white space. Another, probably earlier, version of the same design, remaining in the imperial collection and carrying a Daoguang mark, shows an intermediary stage (Li Jiufang 2002, no. 332).

This four-character regular-script reign mark was used in the Daoguang period alongside seal-script marks. The Daoguang emperor seems to have been less fussy than the Qianlong emperor about the precise formulation of his reign mark.