Snuff bottle, 1723-1880 (5364-1901)
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
1723-1880
Snuff is powdered tobacco, usually blended with aromatic herbs or spices. The habit of snuff-taking spread to China from the West during the 17th century and became established in the 18th century. People generally carried snuff in a small bottle. By the 20th century these bottles had become collectors' items, owing to the great variety of materials and decorative techniques used in their production.
The bottle is a heart-shaped flattened flask form with a dome-shaped stopper. The bottle is made of glass, blue flecked with dark green, perhaps imitating lapiz lazuli; the stopper of crackled glass stained green and set in metal. The base of the bottle is flat without a foot.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Physical characteristics
- Dimensions
- Height: 5.1 cm
- Materials and techniques
- Glass coloured in blue with flecked green, with crackled glass stopper coloured green and set in metal
Technical characteristics
- Place recorded
- China
Identification
- Candidate id
- vam-O7875
- Museum object number
- 5364-1901
- Source note
- Facts transcribed from the linked single-object source. Wider type attribution and authenticity have not been independently verified.
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: confirm the wider type and source attribution against specialist references.