A magnificent white jade 'sage' snuff bottle


18th/19th century, probably Suzhou SchoolSuperbly hollowed, the rounded bulbous body raised on a flat oval foot surmounted by a slightly flared neck, exquisitely carved in low relief with a continuous landscape enclosing a bearded sage walking towards a pavilion surrounded by willow, pine and wutong trees issuing from craggy rockwork, the well polished stone of an attractive even white tone, stopper. 5.3cm (2in) high. (2).
|十八/十九世紀 白玉仙人圖鼻煙壺，或蘇作Provenance:Edmund F. Dwyer CollectionA West Coast private collectionChristie's New York, 4 June 1992, lot 67Sotheby's Hong Kong, 5 May 1994, lot 1476A distinguished Asian private collectionExhibited:On loan to the Asian Civilisations Museum, Singapore, 1996-2002來源：Edmund F. Dwyer舊藏美國西岸私人舊藏紐約佳士得，1992年6月4日，拍品編號67香港蘇富比，1994年5月5日，拍品編號1476亞洲顯赫私人收藏展覽：1996至2002年借展於新加坡亞洲文明博物館The present snuff bottle is carved from a superb white pebble stone representing the high standard of purity of white jade material favoured by the Qing dynasty Suzhou carvers. The masterly and superbly understated low-relief carving include features of the classic style in the serrated rockwork, the literati and intimate nature subject of a sage within a relaxed idyllic rural setting, together with the well-conceived composition of the design, all of which are typical of mid Qing dynasty Suzhou school carving.The present lot can be compared to a number of Suzhou examples of similar rounded form with related subject matter and quality of carving. See for example a white jade 'sage' snuff bottle of similar carving style, Suzhou, 1730-1820, illustrated by M.C.Hughes, The Chester Beatty Library, Dublin. Chinese Snuff Bottles, Baltimore, 2009, p.56, no.40. Compare also with a white jade 'Mi Fu' snuff bottle, 1700-1780, illustrated by H.Moss, V.Graham and K.B.Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Mary and George Bloch Collection, vol.1, Hong Kong, 1995, p.300, no.121, which was later sold at Bonhams Hong Kong, 25 May 2011, lot 38; and a white jade 'prunus' snuff bottle, 1660-1770, H.Moss, ibid., p.294, no.118, which was later sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 26 November 2013, lot 89. See also a white jade 'prunus' snuff bottle, 1720-1770, and a grey-white jade 'scholar' snuff bottle, 1720-1820, both Suzhou School, illustrated in The Baur Collection. Geneva: Chinese Snuff Bottles, Geneva, 2007, pp.212 and 220, nos.H83 and H88.鼻煙壺直口，圓肩，圓腹。壺體淺浮雕一高士置身於山林景色中，挺立著棵棵松樹梧桐，間飾亭台樓閣。白玉質瑩潤光澤，器型豐滿柔美。此壺之上乘玉質，細膩精湛的淺浮雕工藝以及高士題材均為典型蘇州鼻煙壺的特色。與本壺造型、題材及工藝接近的例子，可參考都柏林切斯特比替圖書館藏一件蘇作白玉仙人圖鼻煙壺，1730-1820年，著於M.C.Hughes，《The Chester Beatty Library, Dublin. Chinese Snuff Bottles》，巴爾的摩，2009年，頁56，編號40。也參考瑪麗及莊智博夫婦舊藏一件蘇作白玉帶皮雕拜石圖鼻煙壺，1700-1780年，見莫士撝，Victor Graham，曾嘉寶著，《A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles: The Mary and George Bloch Collection》，第一冊，香港，1995年，頁300，編號121，後售於香港邦瀚斯，2011年5月25日，拍品編號38；同一舊藏裡也見一件蘇作白玉梅花圖鼻煙壺，1660-1770年，同上著錄，頁294，編號118，後售於香港蘇富比，2013年11月26日，拍品編號89。鮑爾收藏裡也有二例可資對比，一件為1720-1770年蘇作白玉梅花圖鼻煙壺，另一件為1720-1820年灰白玉文人圖鼻煙壺，其造型及工藝與本壺類似，見《The Baur Collection. Geneva. Chinese Snuff Bottles》，日內瓦，2007年，頁212及220，編號H83及H88。