Snuff bottle, 1750-1850

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 flattened oviform. The design consists of a sage and pupil on one side and two boys on the other; the whole in a landscape of rocks and pines on a diapered ground. The mouth and base of the bottle are mounted with brass, and to the stopper (101A), which is of green marble, is attached a brass spatula. Flattened heart form with cylindrical flared neck; dome-shaped stopper. Lacquer, red, with carved decoration, with brass mounts at neckrim and foot; stopper of green marble set in brass.

Bearded man and a younger man (his pupil?) on a terrace with lattice fence or railings behind, in a landscape of rocks and pines on a diapered ground; on reverse, two boys in similar setting; diaper decoration around neck with lappet border. Receding footrim of brass, solid underneath.