Bottle ID: 51

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MOLDED RETICULATED WANG BINGRONG

Date: 1820-1860

Height: 60 mm

Porcelain, of rectangular form with rounded shoulders and a cylindrical neck and recessed oval foot, crisply molded in relief on one side with a scaly dragon chasing a flaming pearl on a ground of clouds and waves which continue on the reverse, the biscuit covered overall in a pale manilla-yellow glaze, the base incised with a four character mark, Wang Bingrong.

Attributed to Jingde Zhen.

Similar Examples:

Crane Collection no. 195.
Stevens, Bob C. The Collector's Book of Snuff Bottles, 1976, p. 93, no. 263.
Moss, Hugh, Victor Graham and Ka Bo Tsang. The Art of the Chinese Snuff Bottle - The J & J Collection, 1993, Vol. I, pp. 414-415, no. 248.
Low, Denis S. K. More Treasures from the Sanctum of Enlightened Respect, 2002, p. 202, no. 187.

Provenance:

Clare Lawrence Ltd.
Sotheby's, New York, November 22, 1988, lot 262

Of the three master potters which included Wang Bingrong, Chen Guozhi and Li Yucheng, it is Wang who was the most prolific, and in terms of variety the most versatile. His pieces are undated but by comparison with Chen Guozhi and the potter, Xin Quan, it can be surmised that his working period must have been around 1820-1860. In addition to snuff bottles, where his work seemed to be at its finest in miniature, his studio produced individual items, such as brush pots, and sets - a series of desk objects which included brush rests, spill vases, incense burners, small vases and so on. This bottle is highly illustrative of his style which was at its height, very bold. However Wang's work was also mundane and uninspiring at times presumably because his commercial studio produced so much work. Almost a third of the extant bottles in biscuit porcelain are either signed by Wang Bingrong or clearly attributable to him or his studio. Of these the 'dragon on a pierced cloud' design is one of the most popular. The majority of this design are glazed in colors from cream or brown to light blue. Although this type of pierced work is seen in objects produced by other potters Wang seems to have had a monopoly on this design when it came to snuff bottles.

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