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March 28, 2024, 06:23:18 pm
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Butterflies Porcelain Bottle

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Author Topic: Butterflies Porcelain Bottle  (Read 1748 times)
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Steven
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« Reply #20 on: April 06, 2016, 04:56:41 pm »

Dear Tom B and Giovanni,

I think that I understand your concerns about the porcelain  bottle being made in 1932, From the inscription and the colors being used on the bottle ,I am pretty positive its a 1992 bottle. I have seen a couple of similar porcelain bottles very well done during the 80s-90s, very detailed painted, some are landscaping some the same butterfly scheme. all with the same original stopper.

Steven
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« Reply #21 on: April 06, 2016, 08:35:45 pm »

Dear Tom B and Giovanni,

Here are a group of bottles made in 80s-90s,  some of them are better quality, some are not, The butterflies one is one of the best quality among of them, all the bottles seems hand painted, almost half of them signed, they all have custom made colorful porcelain stopper to fit the bottles.

Steven


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Wattana
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« Reply #22 on: April 06, 2016, 09:14:19 pm »

Dear Steven,

I have a bottle almost identical to the tall yellow straight-sided one (second from LEFT in the second group). I bought it (as new) in Hong Kong in 1978! The painting quality is high, but there is no inscription, as you would expect from that period.

Tom L.
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« Reply #23 on: April 06, 2016, 11:41:35 pm »

Dear all,

I think the signed off is Yu Ming-玉民 and the storyline is base on hundred butterfly motif-百蝶圖.

This vase motif is very similar.
http://www.christies.com//lotfinder/lot/a-famille-rose-butterfly-bottle-vase-xuantong-5982366-details.aspx?from=searchresults&intObjectID=5982366&sid=2deff4ec-8483-4707-b5a7-997b64c275b0

I have seen similar porcelain bottle in this shape dated to late 19th but I am guessing it to be early 20th.

Cheers,
YT
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« Reply #24 on: April 07, 2016, 11:39:50 pm »

Dear Tito,

Regarding the Black bottle, I am of mixed opinion.
It could be a mottled dark soapstone as suggested by Tom B.

Or it could be carved resin in imitation to tortoise shell.
Just look closely if those small dots are porosity around the neck?
Secondly, why is the character surface polished yet the carvings left raw?
Thirdly is the white powder after scraping. Is it very fine or lumpy?
I am only guessing and have to apologize if I am wrong.

Cheers,
YT
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« Reply #25 on: April 08, 2016, 09:14:05 pm »

Hello YT,

Earlier in the thread I answered your question.  I daid that The material that I scraped from inside the bottle has a fine chalk/sand(y) consistency very similar to what you get when you scrape raw (not hardened or porcelain) ceramic.

I also said that I know that the material is not resin/plastic.  I am familiar with this material as I have several rare netsuke made from antique Japanese plastic. 

Tito
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« Reply #26 on: April 09, 2016, 01:16:08 am »

Dear Tito,

Thank you for the consistent answer. I am just putting out the possibility for you to eliminate. Although I have even wilder guesses but those need to be verify.

Cheers,
YT
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« Reply #27 on: April 09, 2016, 07:18:33 pm »

Well, YT, thanks for trying to solve the mystery of the black bottle. 
A couple of additional facts about it:  It feels cold and heavy in the hand, and is not affected by heat.

While someone comes out with a better answer for the mystery bottle, I am ready to show another bottle that I wondering about.  Because of its apparent material, I guess I need to open a new threat in the gem and stone section.
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« Reply #28 on: April 11, 2016, 12:48:26 pm »

All,

I am posting this porcelain bottle on this threat, because the question that I have relates to the '100 Butterflies' bottle.

Is this bottle from the same time period, and same school, as the Butterflies bottle, be it early or late 20th century?  The wasps that are shown  on the front panel appear to be similarly finished as the butterflies on the butterflies bottle.

I looked in Gotheborg.com and I couldn't find the four-character mark that are painted on this bottle.  Maybe I missed it.  Does anyone know what period the characters represent?

Tito


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« Reply #29 on: April 11, 2016, 02:23:52 pm »

Dear Tito,
 
     It is a badly inscribed and scratched late 20th C.  'Qianlong Nianzhi' mark in Kaishu (or standard script), but the bottle is 1980s in my opinion. You are probably more used to the same mark in Zhuanshu (seal script).

     These were sold for US$5 each in Hong Kong in the 1980s.
Joey
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« Reply #30 on: April 11, 2016, 03:24:32 pm »

Quote
It is a badly inscribed and scratched late 20th C.

Tito,

I agree with Joey on period and likely origin of this bottle.  As Joey infers these bottles were mass produced for the tourist trade, and I actually think that the bottom mark was not painted at all, but applied using a stamp.

Charll   
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Charll K Stoneman, Eureka, California USA, Collector Since 1979.

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« Reply #31 on: April 11, 2016, 06:02:06 pm »

So, these bottles were mass produced and reasonably sold in Hong Kong in the 1980's.  Still, I think they did a better job at creating these bottles, that they did at mass producing Japanese netsuke replicas.  They did a terrible job at that, and still do

Thanks Joey and Charll for your comments.

Tito. 
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« Reply #32 on: April 12, 2016, 09:40:06 am »

Dear Tito,

     No problem. I agree with Charll, that the mark was stamped on; not even painted. I was in HK in the early 1980s, and bought 20+ as gifts for friends in Israel. I think I got 22 for US$100 (ie, 2 freebies). My friends all loved them, though that could have been simply gracious receipt of a gift.  Roll Eyes Grin

Best,
Joey
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« Reply #33 on: April 12, 2016, 09:57:06 pm »

I bumped into another bottle which should be from same studio, just want to share with you all.

The quality of painting is fairly high, I actually really like it, don't mind to spend $50.00 to have it.Smiley

Steven


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« Reply #34 on: April 13, 2016, 12:14:44 am »

That is one of the nicest painted landscapes I have seen on one of these bottles..

Nice find Steven !
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« Reply #35 on: April 13, 2016, 08:23:48 am »

WOW, Steven!

    That is a beauty!  And for US$50! Congratulations.
Best,
Joey
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Tom B.
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« Reply #36 on: April 13, 2016, 01:41:55 pm »

Dear Steven,

Congratulations on acquiring a gem among the modern porcelain snuff bottles and it will surely be highly regarded sometime in the future.

By the way I have to agree with you on the dating of the butterfly SB posted by Tito; it certainly is from 1992.  The shape is identical to the 3rd SB from the left in the first two images you posted: 

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Best regards,

Tom B.

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« Reply #37 on: April 13, 2016, 01:49:13 pm »

Dear Tom B.,

    Well spotted.
Best,
Joey
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« Reply #38 on: August 22, 2016, 02:12:25 am »

Dear all,

The butterflies porcelain bottle is actually part of a 30-bottle group made exclusively for Hong Kong members in a 1975 journal by Michael Kaynes.

Cheers,
YT


* SBR 1975 Butterflies.jpg (71.29 KB, 525x700 - viewed 25 times.)
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« Reply #39 on: August 22, 2016, 04:19:13 am »

Well spotted YT.

I see that the British Pound was worth USD2.33 back then.
Aahh...those were the days!  Roll Eyes

Tom
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