A 'SUZHOU' AGATE SNUFF BOTTLE

very well hollowed, of flattened globular form below a slightly tapered neck, the mouth concave, resting on a flat oval foot, the stone of a pale translucent gray with dark brown inclusions, carved in relief with a continuous scene, depicting Meng Haoran riding a donkey followed by an attendant carrying a prunus branch, one shoulder carved with meandering prunus branches, the other shoulder with a seven-character inscription, the reverse featuring a fisherman on the edge of a rocky bank plucking a fish out of the turbulent water, with a cottage in the background, the brown inclusions on the neck rendered as clouds, with some of the carving continuing to the base

Kaynes-Klitz Collection.
Sotheby's Hong Kong, 30th October 1990, lot 61.

Patrick K. M. Kwok, 'The Joe Grimberg Collection of Chinese Snuff Bottles', Arts of Asia, November-December 1993, p. 94, no. 27.
Vanessa F. Holden, 'The Joe Grimberg Collection of Chinese Snuff Bottles', Oriental Art, 2002, Volume 48, No. 4, pp. 65-72, figs. 22 & 23.

The bottle is in excellent overall condition with miniscule nicks on the mouth rim that are barely noticeable.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The present bottle is one of the highlights of the Suzhou School of agate bottles. Created by a highly imaginative and skilled carver, the abstract dark brown inclusions have been brilliantly incorporated into a lively exterior scene. The celebrated Tang dynasty poet, Meng Haoran, is depicted astride his mule within a mountainous landscape, followed by his dutiful attendant. One can sense both Meng's despondency with his unsuccessful official career and his everlasting hope that a return to the Court may be possible for him. The prunus blossom is symbolic of that hope as it is the flower of winter, the first to blossom as spring approaches.

The inscription can be translated as:

'Two thirds of the moon
go to Yangzhou.'