1907年 玻璃內畫「雙歡」圖鼻煙壺 馬少宣或家族作

《丁酉春日》、《馬少宣》款 「少」、「宣」印

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579

Bottle: One chip to the inner lip Painting: good condition.
"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."

At first glance, it appears that the four characters before Ma Shaoxuan’s signature mean ‘Inscribing lines from the Shipin’, but neither the form nor the content of the poem is anything like the poems in the Ershisi shipin 二十四詩品 by Sikong Tu 司空徒 (from which Ma did copy lines in other works; see Sale 3, lot 27), and a much earlier work called Shipin is written in prose, not poetry; hence the interpretation of the four characters to mean ‘Inscribing a poem’ and ‘appraising the lines’. The content of the poem on this bottle indicates clearly that it relates to the fall of the Northern Song dynasty in the early twelfth century. It was written by the Song poet Lin Sheng 林升and is entitled Ti Lin’an di 題臨安邸 (‘Inscribed on the Lodging at Lin’an’), Lin’an being the Southern Song capital at Hangzhou. The same poem appears on Sale 7, lot 114, by Ma’s nephew Ma Shaoxian, where it is explained further.

          Beyond the hills are more green hills, beyond the towers more towers still.

          The songs and dances on the West Lake will never end.

          The pleasure-seekers, intoxicated by the warm breeze,

          Blithely confuse Hangzhou with Bianzhou.

These two badgers, in precisely this composition, are repeated several times in Ma’s career (for a miniature example, see Sale 5, lot 100) and also appear painted by Ma Shaoxian in 1921 in an identical composition and style. This suggests the possibility that this is an example of a subject that may have been painted for Ma Shaoxuan by his nephew Shaoxian or some other member of the family.

The Chinese word for badger is huan 獾, which is homophonous with huan 歡, (happiness or joy). A great many pendants are made with badgers roughhousing as on this bottle.