A MINIATURE RUBY-RED GLASS SNUFF BOTTLE QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY

Robert Hall, 1995.

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. 678.

Minscule chip to the outer lip and similar to the inner lip. One elongated air bubble just below the neck.
"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 bottle falls into the miniature category. It sits most comfortably either in the fingertips or at the base of the fingers, but not in the hand.

The few scattered air bubbles and some very slight swirling may indicate an early date, but such features should not be taken as independent dating guides of any great significance. Even if all early ruby-glass bottles were made at the court, the number of different batches of ruby-glass produced, and the number of glassmakers involved in working them over a period of time would suggest that such features were probably not exclusive to early glass.

Formally, this enormously confident bottle is a delight. With its wide mouth, portly yet elegant form, and excellent detailing, it is among the most impressive known examples of ruby-glass bottles. The compressed pear shape was common throughout the snuff-bottle period, but customarily more compressed than it is in this example. The extra depth and hence capacity gives even so small a bottle considerable presence, and this is accentuated, once the stopper is removed, by the unusually wide mouth.