Bottle ID: 423

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PLAIN WITH CARVED OPAQUE AMBER CAMEO

Date: 1750-1850

Height: 63 mm

Amber, very well hollowed, of transparent dark brown and translucent yellow-ochre colored amber, of flattened rectangular form with shoulders sloping to a cylindrical neck and a recessed oval footrim, carved in low relief on one side, using the natural coloring in the material as a cameo, with a qilin, standing on turbulent waves, his head turned back as he exhumes a spray of vapor in which floats a yinyang symbol, the reverse left plain.

Similar Examples:

None found.

Provenance:

Hugh Moss (HK) Ltd.
The Clatworthy Collection
Robert Hall
Sotheby's, New York, September 15, 1998, Lot 87
Neal W. and Frances R. Hunter

The use of the material by the carver is extremely unusual and magically artistic, with just the single splash of the root-amber part used to carve the beast with just enough of the opaque material around it to create a halo of light, giving the scene great energy and focus.

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