A MOULDED PORCELAIN 'SQUIRREL AND GRAPES' SNUFF BOTTLE QING DYNASTY, 18TH / 19TH CENTURY

together with a watercolour illustration by Peter Suart

Robert Hall, Chinese Snuff Bottles I, London Convention, London, 1987, no. 63.

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. 1229.

Tiny chip on the squirrels tail. Otherwise, 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."

One of the more popular naturalistic forms found in early moulded porcelain bottles and well into the nineteenth century is the squirrel-and-grapes form. Squirrels (basically rats with good public relations) are fecund creatures, reproducing in litters, and grapes are another obvious symbol of fertility, with their multiple fruit growing in a single bunch and a single vine providing so many bunches. Symbolism aside, this bottle and others like it possess great appeal in their compact, functional, and attractive form.

This model enjoyed unusual longevity; it was produced from the last decades of the eighteenth century through to the late Qing dynasty. Even this early model is known from a number of different moulds (mentioned in the Treasury 6 commentary to this bottle).

This cream-coloured glaze appears to have been popular from the 1780s into the Jiaqing period, although similar creamy glazes were used on earlier eighteenth-century ceramic articles other than snuff bottles. Whether the dab of black added directly onto the biscuit to depict the eyes is enamel or glaze is difficult to judge here, as it is on a number of mid-Qing bottles where such details are added in black. On Sale 4, lot 134, which has a similar colour added to the biscuit eye, it might be glaze, since black enamel is also used in the decoration there and is quite different; it also seems to have been fired together with the white glaze of the body, since the two run into each other at one point.