MASTER OF THE ROCKS SCHOOL, 1740-1840

Details

A VERY RARE AND UNUSUAL BLACK AND GREENISH-GREY JADE SNUFF BOTTLE
MASTER OF THE ROCKS SCHOOL, 1740-1840
Of well-hollowed, flattened form, the bottle is carved through the opaque black area on one main side with a woodcutter and a fisherman with his catch-basket beside him, the two figures representing two of the Four Noble Professions, all within a rocky landscape beneath a pine tree and beside a tall, crag-like rock formation, the other side of mottled greyish-green color is carved with a raised, rounded rectangular panel with a concave depression to form an integral snuff dish.
2 ½ in. (6.4 cm.) high, tourmaline stopper

Provenance

George Tcheng Collection., Taipei.
Christie's Hong Kong, 4 November 1995, lot 1266.
Hugh Moss (HK) Ltd.
J & J Collection; Christies' New York, 17 September 2008, lot 50.
Hugh Moss (HK) Ltd., Hong Kong, 2009.
Ruth and Carl Barron Collection, Belmont, Massachusetts, no. 5003.

Special notice

This lot is offered without reserve.

Lot Essay

This bottle is typical of the Master of the Rocks School, featuring the popular subject matter of the Four Professions (represented here by two of them - a common practice with this School) and characteristic carving of rocks and trees. It is noteworthy for the integral snuff dish formed on one side, which is very rare for the School, as well as the even, rich black tone. Although unlikely as a natural color, the black permeates well into the stone. Black jade was highly sought after, and this example is one of the most intense in color. However, staining was a standard option for the post-Song jade carver, and one frequently used, either to create or enhance a pebble-skin, or to suggest the highly valued black jade of the ancients.

For two examples of yellowish-green and russet-brown jade snuff bottles from the Master of the Rocks School carved on the darker side with a scene, see Moss, Graham, Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles, Vol. 1, Hong Kong, 1995, pp. 358-61, nos. 138 and 139.

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