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Snuff bottle

Snuff bottle

  • Place of origin:

    China (made)

  • Date:

    1821-1880 (made)

  • Artist/Maker:

    Unknown (production)

  • Materials and Techniques:

    Opaque white glass with overlays of blue and green glass carved in relief

  • Credit Line:

    Salting Bequest

  • Museum number:

    C.1539-1910

  • Gallery location:

    In Storage

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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.

Physical description

The bottle is a flattened pear form, wider at the base, with a particularly wide neck-hole. There is no stopper.
It is made from opaque white glass, with overlays of blue and green glass carved in relief.
The decoration depicts a feng-huang (Chinese phoenix) above a lotus flower. On the reverse is a dragon above a flaming pearl.
The base is flat with oval indentation underneath and no foot.

Place of Origin

China (made)

Date

1821-1880 (made)

Artist/maker

Unknown (production)

Materials and Techniques

Opaque white glass with overlays of blue and green glass carved in relief

Dimensions

Height: 5.5 cm

Descriptive line

Opaque white glass snuff bottle with overlays of blue and green glass carved in relief, China, 1821-1880

Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)

White, Helen. Snuff Bottles from China. London: Bamboo Publishing Ltd in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum, 1992. 291p., ill. ISBN 1870076109.

Materials

Glass

Techniques

Carving

Subjects depicted

Dragon; Lotus; Pearl; Phoenix

Categories

Containers; Personal accessories; Glass

Collection code

EAS

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Qr_O7919
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