清十八 / 十九 翡翠光素鼻煙壺

哈特曼，紐約，1968年
Gerd Lester，1986年

《國際中國鼻煙壺協會學術期刊》，1978年12月，封面
《Antiques World》， 1980年9月，頁65
Hugh Moss、Victor Graham 及曾嘉寶，《A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Mary and George Bloch Collection》，卷1，香港，1996年，編號177

Small chip to the outer lip. 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."

The source of this material was probably the same as for Treasury 1, no. 176. Both have similar very dark markings in a paler ground of a distinctive nature, although the ground is slightly more purple here. It is possible that both pieces came from a single boulder, but in different areas of the stone. However tenuous, this allows us to raise the possibility of this being a product of the palace workshops, since the other bottle can be reasonably attributed to them on the strength of a number of features. A significant proportion of all jade bottles appears to have been made at the court, and a good deal more for the court, so there is no doubt that plain jadeite bottles were also made there. So far, however, those that can be attributed stylistically to the palace are rare, no. 176 being a notable exception.

One would expect any palace jadeite bottles from the mid-Qing period to be hollowed well enough to function properly as snuff bottles, conforming to the eighteenth-century standard. It would also be expected them to have some other palace features, however plain the bottle. Not only is this material a possible association with the court through no. 176, the hollowing is also good and the foot is a concave oval depression surrounded by a tiny rounded footrim, a feature of a number of other bottles attributable to the palace, although, of course, not exclusively.