Lot 518. An inside-painted crystal snuff bottle, Wang Xisan, dated to the jiyou year (1969), the bottle 1750-1850; 2 5/8 in. (6.7 cm.) high. Estimate $12,000 – $15,000. Price realised USD 15,000. Christie's Image Ltd 2016
The interior is painted on both sides with a scene of three kittens amidst rocks and flowering plants playing whimsically with butterflies, with an inscription and seal of the artist in the reserve. The bottle is carved with blossoming orchids and butterflies, quartz stopper
Provenance: Robert Kleiner, Belfont Company Ltd., Hong Kong, 1996.
Ruth and Carl Barron Collection, Belmont, Massachusetts, no. 2267.
Notes: For a discussion of the artist Wang Xisan see Moss, Graham, Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles, the Mary and George Bloch Collection, Vol. 6, Part 1, Hong Kong, 2008, pp. 273-275. The authors note, “As an artistic genius, Wang rapidly became one of the finest of all enamellers, both artistically and technically, that China has ever produced.” The artist paints glass snuff bottles and interior-painted snuff bottles, showing great artistry in both.
The present subject of kittens appears to be unusual in Wang Xisan's repertoire of themes. For other examples of inside-painted snuff bottles by the artist see ibid., Volume 4, Part 2, Hong Kong, 2000, pp. 558-589, nos. 656-667.
Christie's. THE RUTH AND CARL BARRON COLLECTION OF FINE CHINESE SNUFF BOTTLES: PART II, 16 March 2016, New York, Rockefeller Plaza
