Guangzhou Imperial Workshops, Qianlong mark and period, 乾隆 1736–1750

Polychrome enamels on copper, of oblong form with a narrow neck and small recessed foot enameled with a Qianlong nian zhi (made during the Qianlong period) four-character mark, the body decorated with a continuous scene of six deer, bats, lingzhi and the Three Friends of Winter, which includes pine tree, bamboo, and flowering prunus tree.

The Three Friends of Winter, deer and lingzhi are all symbols of longevity while the bats refer to blessings. An identical example of the same size but with a Yongzheng mark is published in Robert Kleiner, Chinese Snuff Bottles in the Collection of Mary and George Bloch (British Museum: 1995), cat. no. 20. This earlier example could indicate that the present bottle would have been made in the early years of the Qianlong reign, not too long after the Yongzheng example, and perhaps by the same hand.

H: 8.7 cm

Provenance 起源: Linda F. Crawley

Published 发布: Asiantiques, A Fascination for Miniatures: The Linda F. Crawley Collection of Chinese Snuff (2008), cat. no. 86

Ref. 086-L0580

SOLD