Putai Ho-Shang Snuff Bottle

B25

Chalcedony, of pale-beige mushroom colour with darker inclusions incorporated in a design depicting Pu Tai He Shang waving a hand at a bat and seated beneath tobacco leaves; the well hollowed bottle of flattened rounded form resting on a raised oval foot rim.

Chinese, 1750-1860
Stopper: green quartz on an ivory collar
Provenance: Estelle Chapman, London, 1973
Height: 5.8cm

There is a large group of excellent agate snuff bottles made between 1750 and 1850 whose objectivity was to pursue the natural inclusions within the stone to create a story or scene often using carving to highlight the theme. Pu Tai He Shang is the patron saint of tobacconists.