M5823
£9,500
Description
Chinese white jade snuff bottle of flattened baluster form, carved on the body in high relief with five open-winged bats, wu fu, all on a short oval foot rim beneath a cylindrical mouth.
2 ¾ inches, 7cm high without stopper (rose quartz stopper).
Circa 1750.
Condition
Excellent condition.
Provenance & Additional Information
- From the collection of John and Trudy Cohen, collection no. B17
- From the collection of Nguyen Tan-Phu, 1975.
- Sold by Bonhams Hong Kong in their auction of The Trudy and John Neville Cohen Collection of Chinese Jade and Hardstone Pendants, Snuff Bottles and Carvings, 5th May 2025, lot 82.
- The bat, fu, is a homophone for happiness, making it a symbol of good fortune. Five bats, wu fu, signify five happinesses, longevity, wealth, health, virtue and the fulfillment of one’s natural lifespan.
- This remarkable snuff bottle features the five bats superbly carved in relief. The wings are all slightly concave and the skin of the jade is typical of an eighteenth-century polish.
- A related jade bat and gourd snuff bottle of the Qianlong period is illustrated in Zhongguo biyanhu zhenshang, Hong Kong, 1992, p. 224, pl. 261.
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