Snuff bottle, carved red lacquer, China, 1750-1850
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
1750-1850
People generally carried snuff in a small bottle. Snuff-bottle of carved red 'Soochow' lacquer; the stopper is fitted with a brass spatula. The bottle is of flattened ovoid shape, each side being carved with a group of five musicians; each scene has a rocky background and the groups are separated by pine-trees. The dome-shaped stopper is decorated with two bands of scrollwork radiating from the top.
Flattened heart from, with short cylindrical neck and graduated flared neckrim; dome-shaped stopper with small finial. Lacquer, red, with carved decoration, with brass mounts at neckrim and foot; stopper of carved red lacquer on brass, which is exposed at rim and finial. On each side, group of five musicians beneath trees, rocky landscape in distance, diaper ground with 'wan' characters in middle ground, rocks and foliage in foreground; zig-zag border around neck; two bands of scrolling radiate from finial of stopper. Footrim of brass, solid underneath.
Bequeathed by Mr. Thomas Boone, per Mrs. Temple, accessioned in 1903.
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
- Carved red lacquer with brass mounts and a stopper of carved red lacquer on brass
- Dimensions
- Height: 6.3 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-O75998
- Museum object name
- Snuff bottle
- Holding institution
- Victoria and Albert Museum, London
- Museum object number
- 931&A-1903
- Museum system number
- O75998
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.