31.3.700 Buddhist Delight Translucent white nephrite; of well hollowed, rounded rectangular form with a cylindrical neck, concave lip and recessed, slightly convex, elongated oval foot surrounded by a protruding, rounded footrim of the same shape; engraved on one main side with four luohan, one with a tiger, on a bank and on the other with an inscription in clerical script, followed by another in regular script ‘Imperial composition in the Spring of the bingchen year of the Qianlong reign,’ followed by one seal of the engraver yin (‘seal’) Bottle: 1760-1850 Engraving: Wu Xijiu, 1880-1920 Height: * Mouth/lip: .56/1.45 cm Stopper: coral; gilt-bronze collar Provenance: Victor Topper Gallery, Toronto Sotheby’s, Hong Kong, 3 May 1995, lot 557 When original acquired at Sotheby’s, Hong Kong, this was considered to be a genuine Qianlong engraving from the last years of his life.  Subsequent work on the glass volume of Moss, Graham, Tsang, A Treasury of Chinese Snuff Bottles. The Mary and George Bloch Collection, Vol. 5, Glass, however, suggested that the decoration was in fact added by the late-Qing and Republican glass engraver, Wu Xijiu who also engraved on glass bottles.  There is a glass bottle known with an identical subject carved with all the same idiosyncrasies of the present example, and the style of engraved calligraphy also matches Wu’s.