A SANDWICHED STRAWBERRY-PINK GLASS SNUFF BOTTLE, QING DYNASTY

Attributed to the Imperial Beijing glassworks
China, 1740-1840

Of flattened disc form with a slightly sprawling neck and a very large mouth typical for 18th century imperial glass bottles, the completely opaque glass shading from an outer layer of milky strawberry color to a darker-toned underlayer visible at the lip.
Sandwiched glass bottles are characterized by simple shapes usually blown into a mold, where distinctive colors and textures were created by fusing a layer of brightly colored or distinctively marked glass between two plainer colors, the upper one of which must be transparent to some extent. This strawberry-pink color was probably derived from ruby-red glass made at the court from the early 18th century onwards but mixed with other colors. Ruby-red, and sandwiched pink glass were both popular a court, but this particular color is extremely rare.

Shape: Flattened disc form
Hollowing: Standard
Mouth, neck and lip: Slightly sprawling neck and very large mouth
Base: Oval with raised foot rim
Design, marks, school: Attributed to the Imperial Beijing glassworks
Stopper: Nicely cast and silvered bronze stopper with a floral motif and good old spoon
Height of the bottle with stopper: 6.8 cm.
Width of the mouth: 10 mm.
Width of the neck: 18 mm.
Weight: 61 grams
Condition: Very good condition with some wear and few tiny nibbles to outer lip
Provenance: American private collection, old number ‘50’ on spoon

Auction result comparison: The Meriem Collection Important Chinese Snuff Bottles. Christies, New York, 19 September 2007, lot 685. (for another sandwiched strawberry-pink glass snuff bottle)

玫紅色料光素鼻烟壺，清代
或爲北京御用料器工坊制
中國， 1740-1840

壺型： 扁平圓形
掏膛： 規整
壺口、頸與唇部： 頸部龐大，大口
底足： 橢圓高圈足
造型、落款及流派： 或爲北京御用料器工坊制
壺蓋：鍍銀花紋銅蓋，老杓良好
壺高（含壺蓋）： 6.8 厘米
口徑： 10 毫米
壺頸寬： 18 毫米
重量： 61 克
品相： 非常好，有些微磨損，唇部外沿有些許磕碰
來源： 美國私人收藏，小杓上有“50”標識