Snuff Bottle
1750-1850 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
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.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Materials and techniques | Yellow glass with an overlay of blue glass and carved decoration |
Brief description | Snuff bottle, yellow glass with an overlay of blue glass and carved decoration, China, 1750-1850 |
Physical description | The bottle is a slender elongated oblong form, narrower towards the base, with the shoulders sloping up to a flared neck and no stopper. It is made from yellow glass with carved decoration and an overlay of pale blue glass applied in places and partly cut away to form further decoration. It is carved with a continuous decoration of a draped and tied scarf, five roundels containing the shou (long life) character in seal script, and five bats; masks and mock ring handles. There is a band of pale blue overlay around neckrim. The high splayed foot partly formed by overlay has a shallow indentation underneath. The five bats represent the five blessings (long life, riches, health, love of virtue and a natural death, since the Chinese word for bat, fu, forms a homonym with the word for happiness. The restrained used of overlay, the carving on monochrome glass, and the form of decoration together suggest a relatively early date. |
Dimensions |
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Style | |
Credit line | Salting Bequest |
Object history | 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. |
Subjects depicted | |
Summary | 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. |
Bibliographic reference | White, Helen. Snuff Bottles from China. London: Bamboo Publishing Ltd in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum, 1992. 291p., ill. ISBN 1870076109. |
Collection | |
Accession number | C.1676-1910 |
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Record created | June 9, 1998 |
Record URL |
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