Footnotes

• Treasury 1, no. 144
  
  白玉鼻煙壺
  「享帚齋」篆書款，1750～1880
  
  A nephrite pebble-material 'Xiangzhou zhai' snuff bottle
  
  Nephrite of pebble material; very well hollowed, with a flat foot; the foot incised in seal script Xiangzhou zhai ('Offering the Broom Studio')
  1750–1880
  Height: 4.7 cm
  Mouth/lip: 0.55/1.95 and 2.01 cm (oval)
  Stopper: tourmaline; silver collar
  
  Condition: Workshop condition
  
  Provenance:
  Christie's, London, 6 December 1993, lot 218
  
  Published:
  Treasury 1, no. 144
  
  The nephrite from which this bottle was made has just a hint of skin-colour in one tiny patch on one main side. Unless so tiny a hint of skin was actually considered a necessary proof that the nephrite was gathered from a stream, not mined, the most likely reason for this tiny patch is that the colour from the skin went deeper in that area than the artist had anticipated. If he had removed it, it might have interfered with the formal integrity of the bottle, which is perfect.
  
  The studio name on this bottle belonged to one Zhou Enshou (1810 – 1841; jinshi of 1835). Although Zhou was cashiered for some kind of corrupt activity, he seems to have led an active literary life. 'Offering a broom' means to offer up something ordinary and of no particular value as if it were precious treasure, simply because one is blinded by self-importance. When used in the name of a poetry collection or studio, it conveys the ironic sense that one knows one's efforts are worthless but is presenting them as valuable enough to publish, anyway.
  
  Of all the hundreds of bottles which we had measured by the publication of Treasury 1, this is the only one so far where the oval of the neck has the broader dimension between the two main sides rather than from shoulder to shoulder.
  
  閃玉隨形享帚齋款鼻煙壺
  
  卵石料; 掏膛非常規整，平底，底心刻"享帚齋"篆款
  1750–1880
  高﹕ 4.7 厘米
  口徑/唇徑： 0.55/1.95 及 2.01 厘米 (橢圓形)
  蓋﹕ 碧璽； 銀座
  
  狀態敘述： 出坊狀態
  
  來源:
  倫敦佳士得，1993年12月6日，拍賣品號 218
  
  文獻﹕
  Treasury 1, 編號 144
  
  享帚齋主，周恩綬 (1810 – 1841; 1835進士) 也。周恩綬，丹徒人。道光七年（1827）十一月在武漢與林則徐有唱和詩、在林署享宴之事。道光十七年十月因事被評為"不知檢束。妄行干預。實屬有玷清班······著交部嚴加議處。"之後講學於河南上蔡晝院。工詩詞文。有《享帚齋集》，見《丹徒縣志摭餘》，不知存否；亦有《享帚齋詩鈔》四卷、《享帚齋詞鈔》二卷，山東大學藏1874刻本。

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Category: Asian Art / Chinese Works of Art

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