料胎內畫「聊齋劉姓」圖鼻煙壺 周少元製 1903年 《癸卯冬月周少元》款

背面題字：「輔廷仁兄大人正，弟子衡」。

Albert Pyke 收藏
Hugh M. Moss Ltd，倫敦
Ladislas Kardos 收藏
Reif 收藏
紐約佳士得1993年10月18日，編號236

倫敦佳士得，1999年

Hugh Moss、Victor Graham 及曾嘉寶，《A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Mary and George Bloch Collection》，卷4，香港，2000年，編號630

Bottle: There is a tiny chip to the outer lip partly repolished. Painting: very good condition with the exception of some remaining whiteish snuff on the interior adhering to the bottle. The actual colours are somewhat softer 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."

According to Ye Bengqi in early 1974, Zhou Shaoyuan was a nephew of Zhou Leyuan. Ye was acquainted with him, but says that since he was a poor artist, he had a short and unheralded career. This seems to be borne out by the surviving works where twenty-one bottles, dated from 1901 to 1909, are mostly decorative and poor, but there are exceptions and they usually include the subject of auspicious objects, which are his only reference to his illustrious uncle's style in the entire output. Otherwise he spent most of his career working in the style of Ye Zhongsan, as he does here on the side with the figure subject, which is the more pedestrian of the two paintings. The side with auspicious objects is beautifully painted, as are one or two others of the subject, and although his calligraphy is never good, it is competent. He does not have his famous uncle's impeccable sense of composition, but it is nonetheless an agreeable and well-painted work

On the other side we have an illustration from the second story of Liaozhai zhiyi ('Strange Tales of Liaozhai'). A man called Liu was well known for his malicious personality. One day, he was summoned by the God of Hades. His crimes were proclaimed and he was about to be executed and reborn as a beast when his record was checked and it was discovered that he had once, at least, done a good deed. For this reason he was spared and allowed to resume his life on probation. The good deed he was responsible for was done in the thirteenth year of the Chongzheng period (corresponding to1640), a year when the people of the place called Zi in Shandong province were afflicted with famine. At the time Liu was serving in the capacity of chief constable. He came upon a weeping couple who told him that they had just been reunited for a year but had to part again because of the famine. Later, on patrolling, he spotted some people embroiled in argument in front of a shop that sold oil. When he stopped to check, it turned out to be the same couple haggling with the owner of the shop over the price of the sale of the wife. On hearing that the meagre sum of several scores of cash offered by the shopkeeper would hardly be enough to get the husband out of the disaster area and the wife would likely be resold by the shopkeeper to make a profit, Liu first suggested that the shopkeeper increase the sale price so that at least the husband would be saved. To back up his proposition he was willing to contribute half of the increased amount. But the shopkeeper refused, saying that he had already purchased a dozen or so women. Liu was so exasperated that in the end he gave the badly needed money to the couple out of his own pocket so both husband and wife could have a chance to lead a new life together. Long after this incident, whenever Liu came close to committing an evil deed, his friend Li Cuishi would gently remind him of the conditional reprieve granted to him by the God of Hades. Eventually, Liu was known to be still going strong at seventy years of age. In the illustration, Mr Liu is in a blue robe, and the shopkeeper in white.