Bottle ID: 192

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CARVED, WITH BIRD ON A BRANCH

Date: 1750-1860

Height: 57 mm

Agate, very well hollowed, of flattened rounded form with a neatly carved footrim, of honey tones, with a white inclusion carved in relief on one side with a bird perched in a gnarled tree.

Similar Examples:

Crane Collection nos. 117 and 637
Nicollier, Verene. The Baur Collection Geneva, Chinese Snuff Bottles, 2007, pp. 268-269, no. H113.
Sotheby's, Los Angeles, October 31, 1984, lot 117, Collection of Alice B. McReynolds, Part I.
The Chinese Porcelain Company, New York, October 3 through October 7, 1991, lot 102, The Ferhill Park Collection.

Provenance:

Clare Lawrence Ltd.
Mr. and Mrs. M. DuBoff, Florida

Birds appear to be a popular choice amongst the carvers of agate bottles. Like the McReynolds example, this delicate bottle is one of the most painterly, especially given the fact that the majority of bottles of this small group appear stiff and sometimes ungainly. Here the carver has used the natural white tone in the stone to achieve a dramatic contrast with the honey-brown color of the background, creating a highly appealing vignette.

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