Bottle ID: 232

< Previous page

LONELY PINE ON MT. HUANG

Date: 1750-1860

Height: 55 mm

Agate, very well hollowed, of flattened squared form with rounded shoulders and an oval indented foot, of pale honey and gray tones, one side minimally polished using the darker brown inclusions to depict a gnarled pine tree growing form a rocky outcrop which rises from swirling misty clouds, the reverse with a single distant peak rising from clouds.

Similar Examples:

Stevens, Bob C. The Collector's Book of Snuff Bottles, 1976, p. 142, no. 539.
Moss, Hugh, Victor Graham and Ka Bo Tsang. The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle - The J & J Collection, 1993, Vol. I, p. 201, no. 117.
Moss, Hugh, Victor Graham and Ka Bo Tsang. A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles - The Mary and George Bloch Collection, 1998, Vol. 2, Part 1, pp. 240-241, no. 269.

 

Provenance:

Hugh Moss [HK] Ltd.
Robert Hall
Lionel Copley

 

Published:

Hall, Robert. Chinese Snuff Bottles VI, from the Collection of Lionel Copely, Part 2, 1994, no. 113

The famous scenic spot of Mount Huang (Haungshan) in Anhui province, is known for its towering peaks to which gnarled pines cling improbably, with swirling clouds and mist constantly changing the landscape. There are a number of famous pines there, with names such as ‘The Welcome Pine’ ‘The Dragon Pine’ and so forth, and other unnamed peaks with a lone pine at their summit. Here the material has naturally evoked this scene, with the swirling mist behind and around the pine, and on the reverse, the famous ‘Sea of Clouds’ which is the view from the higher peaks of the Huangshan range, where on is above the clouds, looking down. Apart from its identifiable subject, the naturalness and qualities of the material and the form make this one of the most masterly of agate bottles with its almost natural design.

< Back to full list