Snuff bottle with stopper, opaque white glass, with an overlay of red glass, carved in relief, China, 1723-1820

The bottle is an elongated flattened pear form made of opaque white glass, with an overlay of red glass carved in relief. The two-part dome-shaped stopper is made of green and white jadeite jade and coral.
The carved relief depicts a formal design of scrolls and circular motifs enclosed within a key pattern border . The same design is found on the reverse.
The unusual formal archaic decoration suggests that this bottle could have been made in the eighteenth century. How early overlay glass was made is not known; I would not accept the evidence of Zhao Zhiqian (1829-84), quoted by Yang, that he had seen Kangxi overlay snuff bottles (Yang 1987, p.77) but Yang does cite overlay pieces made in the Yongzheng period (1723-1736) mentioned in the Peking palace archives, which would seem to me a more reliable source.
The bottle does not have a foot, the base is small, flat, oval and does not stand very safely.

Salting Bequest

Bequeathed by Mr. George Salting, accessioned in 1910. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Asia Department registers, as part of a 2022 provenance research project.

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.

C.1641&A-1910