The Meriem Collection Part II. Lot 277

277
**AN UNUSUAL RED OVERLAY WHITE GLASS SNUFF BOTTLE
LI JUNTING SCHOOL, ATTRIBUTED TO YANGZHOU, 1810-1840
Of compressed form with flat lip and recessed foot surrounded by a footrim, well carved through the transparent red overlay with the figure of Zhong Kui and a bat on one main side, with a three character seal, dajixiang (great good fortune), the other main side carved with a fruiting pomegranate branch, a radish, a sprig of flowering branch and a spider, coral stopper with vinyl collar and pearl finial
5.2 cm. high
$8,000-12,000

P R O V E N A N C E :
Hugh Moss Ltd.

 Zhong Kui is one of the most popular Chinese mythological figures. According to legend, he appeared to the Tang emperor Minghuang in a dream, promising to protect the emperor from demons he had been suffering from. To celebrate Zhong Kui’s exorcizing the demons, the emperor ordered the famous painter, Wu Daozi, to paint his dream, and ordered the image of the demon-queller reproduced and distributed all over the realm to ward off evil spirits.

See Moss, Graham and Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles, Vol. 5, Glass, no. 1023, for a cinnabar-red overlay on blue glass snuff bottle carved with a design of Zhong Kui, seven demons and a procession of entertainers, attributed to Li Junting; and H. Moss, Snuff Bottles of China, no. 212, for red overlay on white glass example, also attributed to Li Junting.

Other design elements on the bottle are auspicious symbols. The radish (laifu) signifies the arrival (lai ) of good fortune (fu); and the spider and pomegranates stand for fertility.

The Meriem Collection Part II. Lot 277