Fine Chinese White

Posted in Antiques on 09/02/2009 06:33 am by admin

Fine 18th 19th Century Antique Chinese Blue White Bottle Vase
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US $14,400.00

Fine Chinese Carved White Jade Ruyi Scepter 19th Century Original Skin
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US $13,680.00

Fine Chinese Carved Mutton White Jade Pendant
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US $12,800.00

Fine Chinese Carved white Color Jadeite Kwan Yin Statue Original Color
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US $8,800.00

Fine Chinese Carved Mutton White Jade Bracelet
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US $8,500.00

Fine Chinese Carved White Jade Pendant
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US $6,800.00

Fine Chinese White

China's Snuff Bottles - Sensations in Glass!

The first decided to buy bottles that were not carved in stone were made of glass. A wide range of glass bottles are found in all shapes and colors as well as a variety of manufacturing techniques.

Much more research is needed to date these bottles, but now agree in general that glass and metal were the first materials to be used. The problem is that the glass has been used throughout the entire period up to snuff bottle today.

China had little use for the glass before the 17th century, mainly due their skills highly refined porcelain. They had no glass windows, which favors the translucent paper. We're not sure if the glass had been used centuries earlier in China, but certainly that was introduced to Europeans in time for snuff bottles.

Cameo Glass

It is considered as a valuable and important material in the production of fine art. Sometimes they treated him like a stone, and bottles of a solid piece, otherwise, glass blown into molds. The creation of many unusual bottles that are clear to white as the background for the work of overlapping colors. They were also able to control bubbles and by the addition of white spots in the glass, the colors, such as these suggest apt names were created: - wet snow, camphor, and snowflakes.

These bottles are then immersed in brightly colored molten glass would later be carved away to leave a cameo-style design. Some plunged more than once to provide more a layer of color. Another technique is applied to different areas of brown bottle glass molten droplets. When they were carved bottle may have a maximum up to eight different colors cameo carved without increasing the number of layers.

Quality Counts

To a connoisseur, the number of colors or layers is not so important, because it was not a difficult process and a much softer material than stone for carving. What really needs to be assessed is the quality of the size and design general. Very often a beautifully carved and well-designed color overlay will be worth much more than just a multi-colored bottle that went wrong.

To evaluate these bottles color is a consideration, but the attention of much attention as with cameo stone carving, the quality of the carving and especially how well the bottom ends close to the edge of the template. I selected a single layer of ruby red color as a good example to shoot. Shows a coiled dragon "Chih Lung 'Or both sides, also with mythological animal masks and mock ring handles on each shoulder from 1750 to 1860. The dragon is a sign of birth used more like our zodiac signs. (See the photograph by clicking the link at the bottom of this article.)

There is a group of very special, very finely overlay worked bottles known as the "seal of the school", as they always include a stamp with the design. They were running late and date of the second half of the century 19.

Although these were made in the same way, the overlap is much more delicately carved and often even the bulk of the template is controlled to create shading. It is normally used opaque white bottles as background, but some also worked in other opaque colors. So far, I have never seen the light backgrounds or snowflake. * The photograph shows a bottle of the school seal that represents very well a couple of cats who play with insects flitting among the flowers. Each side is a bowl fruit on a table and on the reverse is another scene of a drunken poet who sleeps in a garden. (* See the picture by clicking the link at the bottom of this article.)

Glass layers

Apart from these types overlap spotted many interesting designs, swirling, colorful and plain bottles, both uncut and cut.

Many of these were very complex in the way were made: some were blown into molds then finished by hand, other people involved Blowing a clear glass into a mold, but then another layer was blown inside the first bottle. This layer is a thin layer of one color, however, sandwiched by a layer of clear third parties was also blown in. Looking down at the neck of one of these bottles can clearly see these three layers.

A variety of colors were used successfully along with gold in the creation of snuff bottles. There is no doubt that their advanced knowledge acquired in firing porcelain, and as metal oxides react was put to good use glass.

It was suggested that in addition to the mixture of metals, even small particles of precious stones such as sapphires, emeralds and rubies were added to the molten glass.

Special attention was paid to the feeling of the finished material, which was hit by the kind of slick and even the weight is controlled by the addition of lead. Transparent bottles inside could be controlled and made to appear like crazy these names suggest - Cracked Ice, Fish Net or Sea Spray.

Most of the really fine snuff bottles were made in the Imperial Workshop and other small glass works around Beijing.

Imitations stone

With experience as the Chinese were able to do imitations of other surprising materials. There are many bottles that look and feel like jade, aquamarine, agate and other stones. There was a view in the past that the Chinese are such as counterfeit, with intent to deceive. I'm sure this was not the case, because it was too easy to find by careful inspection. Under small holes on the surface increases could not be polished out and small bubbles would demonstrating that it must be glass. Finally, unlike glass stones can be very easily scratched by steel.

The Chinese enjoy doing imitations convincing valuable minerals as a demonstration of his ability. A cleverly minerals Barite was copied with its bright colors swirling red and yellow impossible to use due to high arsenic content, so that these copies have been caused much intrigue.

Imperial Yellow

I mentioned that a wide range colors are used for glass bottles. colors like sapphire blue and ruby red seem to have been the most popular of the first beings. However, the Emperor Chien-Lung had favorite color decreed could only be used by the imperial family and was a heavy curtain of yellow is now known as `'Imperial yellow.

Not all bottles of this color really are Imperial as after his death, this color is available for everyone. A true "Imperial Yellow 'must be a bottle of his time and that can only be confirmed by the quality of the bottle and size. The `Imperial Yellow 'bottle in the picture is well carved with a design Archaic on both sides and is the period from 1736 to 1795. (See the photograph by clicking the link at the bottom of this article.)

Painted On The Inside

There is no other area of glass bottles that really amazes everyone that is the "Inside painted 'bottles. I have only a couple of examples in the collection, and usually do not favor them as in my opinion, never made for use. Once snuff was placed in them the image is not displayed well, and spoon soon ruin painting.

You must also explain not restrict interior paint for glass, but have applied the same techniques to Crystal and Chalcedon. The vast majority however, are specially designed glass bottles in a uniform manner.

What is remarkable is that through a small hole in the neck that could paint within landscapes, animals, calligraphy and even portraits. For the image to show through the glass the painting had to be reversed, all fine details such as eyelashes, for example, had to be painted first! All these bottles are signed by the artist and many, some very attractive also still being made today.

For our own collection I felt that we should have one or two examples and I was fortunate to buy the first known dated and signed within the bottle painted Kan-Huan Wen. He is one of the first artist well known and highly respected. It has been painted inside a crystal bottle, a scenario Buddhist Lions with a poem on the back. This bottle is signed and dated 1822. (See the photograph by clicking the link at the bottom of this article.)

Later we acquired another example of rock crystal, and these two are the only bottles that have painted the interior. I think this is quite remarkable, since the interior space is so limited, it is difficult to imagine how a beautiful painting was achieved on a surface without completely ruining the other.

At first it would have been a bottle very wrong twice. I do not know if the damaged part that was removed was done before it was painted, but I think it would have been. This was a very bad bottle recessed, low value before it was painted.

In my opinion, is the fact that it was such a short hole that makes the painting even more amazing! Check out the picture. A continuous scene of fish between aquatic plants was painted red, gold, pink, white, green and grisaille dated 1896 and signed Chan Chu-Yuan. This glass has a natural defect the stone that adds to the appeal of water in this picture. (See the photograph by clicking the link at the bottom of this article.)

Most bottles Crystal purposefully made to paint the inside are much bigger than this glass. Some of the paintings made however are difficult to believe possible. There are even pictures they are so well done that are just as well as black and white photographs!

About the Author

John N. Cohen A past director of Jacey Cinemas Ltd. Later the proprietor of a design & photographic studio, now a director of Jacey Homes Ltd., a property development company. Interests and Hobbies: A top international award winning photographer who also became a well known Asian antiques collector and an enthusiast of Jensen British classic cars. Other interests are skiing and Salsa dancing.

For John’s other interests please have a look at: - http://www.jncohen.net

The author has been a very keen collector for many years in helping to create ‘The Cohen collection’.

See the photographs relating to this article by using the following link: - http://www.jncohen.net/antiques/articles.htm

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