Snuff bottle, carved red glass overlay, China, 1750-1895
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
1750-1895
People generally carried snuff in a small bottle. It is made of glass, transparent white mottled with white flecks, with overlay of red glass carved in relief. The decoration depicts Zhong Kui, The Demon Queller, attended by a bat on a cloud of vapour rising from a bottle gourd.
On the reverse there are eight emblems including peach growing from a basket hung on a stand, Buddha's hand citron, a gold ingot, a bronze tripod vessel, coral and a ruyi sceptre. The high straight foot is mainly formed by the overlay and there is an angular indentaion underneath. Zhong Kui, a figure of popular folklore, is much celebrated on the day of the Dragon Boat Race. He is shown on another glass bottle in the collection, C.1652-1910, reclining in a dragon boat.
Bequeathed by Mr. George Salting, accessioned in 1910.
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
- Material
- Glass, transparent white, with overlay of red glass carved in relief
- Dimensions
- Height: 5.7 cm
Technical characteristics
- Place recorded
- China
Identification
- Source note
- Transcribed from the Victoria and Albert Museum, London collection record for this single object (sentences kept verbatim apart from removed sale or rarity wording); how far it represents a wider collectible type has not been independently verified.
- Candidate id
- vam-O8193
- Museum object name
- Snuff bottle
- Holding institution
- Victoria and Albert Museum, London
- Museum object number
- C.1560-1910
- Museum system number
- O8193
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, maker and dating against a specialist reference; this entry documents one recorded example.