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Lot Essay
The double gourd was a popular form for snuff bottles because of its tactile qualities when held in the palm of the hand, and for its auspicious symbolism. The gourd represents abundance and is also associated with Daoism.
Several features of this superbly finished bottle, such as the excellent hollowing and strong form, allow for an attribution to the Palace workshops. Numerous double-gourd-shaped jade bottles, some bearing Qianlong four-character marks, are still in the Imperial Collection, Taipei, and are illustrated in Snuff Bottles in the Collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1991, nos. 119-23. The proportions of the present bottle are quite similar to nos. 119 and 120, both white jade bottles carved with a brocade sash at the waist.
Several features of this superbly finished bottle, such as the excellent hollowing and strong form, allow for an attribution to the Palace workshops. Numerous double-gourd-shaped jade bottles, some bearing Qianlong four-character marks, are still in the Imperial Collection, Taipei, and are illustrated in Snuff Bottles in the Collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1991, nos. 119-23. The proportions of the present bottle are quite similar to nos. 119 and 120, both white jade bottles carved with a brocade sash at the waist.