Geese & Quails

QING PERIOD 1644 to 1911

A MAGNIFICENT GEESE AND QUAILS 珐琅彩 FALANGCAI SNUFF BOTTLE

An outstanding bottle of flattened spherical form.
Superbly painted in fine detail, a continuous bucolic pastoral scene portraying three geese feeding amongst the grasses. Rockery and foliage in the left foreground.
A seated quail to the left under flowering pink peonies. A tranquil stream.
An azure sky, two geese in flight.
A large grey rock, two quails seated, green shrubbery

The collar comprising of a blue band with curlicues, a yellow necklace, inverted ruyi heads in red and blue, above curlicues within a yellow star pointed border.
The foot decorated with blue and yellow ruyi heads above an iron red band.
A four character Qianlong Period Mark in cobalt blue against a white ground under.

This superb bottle is comparable in quality to those bottles produced in the Imperial Workshops of the Imperial Palace, 造 辦 處 Zaobanchu .

Formerly the property of a Japanese collector

Condition: Excellent.
No original cap.

A modern gold metal colour filigreed stopper is offered.

Refer Large Images for details, quality and condition, they also form the description.
Depending on your computer monitor / phone / etc colour may vary to actual.

Dimensions are maximum measurements

Height about: 5.5 cm
Width about: 4.6 cm
A$3,250

An auspicious bottle, that provides a visual pun.
The combined total of geese and quail amount to 8 .The number 8 is pronounced as “ba” in Mandarin, which sounds similar to the word for wealth or prosperity, “发” (fa). This phonetic similarity has led to the strong association of 8 with financial success and good fortune.
The word for Quail in Chinese is "an" it is also a homophone for peace.
Geese have an important place in Chinese poems such as those by the famous Tang Dynasty Poets, Li Bai, Wang Wei, Du Fu, Luo Binwang, recorded in the The Three Hundred Tang Poems - Tang Shi San Bai Shou, 唐詩三百首.
Whether as an indicator of migratory seasonal change, or as "bearing a message of love from afar", by persons separated by a great distance.
The goose displays valour, devotion and loyalty, and is a symbol of marital fidelity as it mates for life.
Considered by all the major experts such as Bob C. Stevens (the Collectors Book of Snuff Bottlers 1976) and the major famous collections, such as Guo'an. Bloch. Meriem. J & J. to name a few.
The finest of all snuff bottles are those that are enamelled on copper, brass, glass, gold.
The art of enamelling was introduced to the Chinese Court in the Kangxi era 1654 to 1722, by the Jesuit Guiseppe Castiglione (Lan Shining).