A YELLOW JADEITE ‘CAT AND BUTTERFLY’ SNUFF BOTTLE, QING DYNASTY 清代黃翡翠“小貓撲蝶”圖鼻烟壺

China, 19th century. Well hollowed, of rounded rectangular form with slightly incurved sides, a short oval foot, and a cylindrical neck. Carved in low relief to one side with a cat playing with a butterfly fluttering above and to the other with a flailing carp below a small yin-yang symbol. The translucent stone of a warm yellow tone with scattered dark speckles and cloudy white inclusions.

Inscriptions: To the side with the cat and butterfly, upper left, ‘Jixiang (lucky, auspicious)’.

Provenance: From a private collection in Texas, USA.
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, small nibbles to mouth and foot, the stone with natural fissures, some of which may have developed into small hairline cracks over time.

Stopper: Amethyst, black platelet, stained and carved spoon
Weight: 53.3 g
Dimensions: Height incl. stopper 74 mm, Diameter neck 12 mm and mouth 7 mm

Cats and butterflies are symbols of longevity. The cat (mao) is a homonym for ‘seventy’, while the butterfly (die) shares the same sound as ‘eighty’. Together, they form a rebus for maodie. This term implies that one would live to be seventy or eighty — considered high age in ancient China.

Expert’s note: A Mohs hardness test performed on the present bottle showed a hardness of 7. The hardness range listed on the Mohs scale for jadeite is 6 to 7.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related but smaller white jade snuff bottle, dated to the 18th century, with a very similar carving of a cat and butterfly, at Sotheby’s London in Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on 15 May 2013, lot 301, sold for GBP 3,750.

清代黃翡翠“小貓撲蝶”圖鼻烟壺
中國，十九世紀。掏膛良好，圓柱形頸部，矩形圓角，收腰，短圈足。一面淺浮雕小貓撲蝶圖，另一面騰躍的鯉魚，下面是一個小的陰陽符號。 暖黃色調的半透明翡翠石料，散佈著暗色斑點和白色絮狀物。

題款: 小貓撲蝶的一面可見“吉祥”字樣

來源：美國德克薩斯私人收藏。
品相：狀況非常好，有輕微磨損，壺嘴和圈足有小磕損，石料有天然脈理，隨著時間的推移，其中一些裂縫可能會發展成細小的裂縫。

壺蓋：紫晶，黑色蓋片，染色和雕刻的勺子
重量：53.3 克
尺寸：含蓋高74 毫米, 頸部直徑12 毫米 與壺口直徑7 毫米

專家注釋：對本瓶進行的摩氏硬度測試顯示硬度為 7。而對於翡翠在摩氏硬度範圍內列出的硬度範圍為 6 至 7。

拍賣結果比較：一件相近但稍小的白玉鼻烟壺，十八世紀，同樣雕刻著小貓撲蝶，見倫敦蘇富比 Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art 2013年5月15日 lot 301, 售價GBP 3,750。

Lot details

China, 19th century. Well hollowed, of rounded rectangular form with slightly incurved sides, a short oval foot, and a cylindrical neck. Carved in low relief to one side with a cat playing with a butterfly fluttering above and to the other with a flailing carp below a small yin-yang symbol. The translucent stone of a warm yellow tone with scattered dark speckles and cloudy white inclusions.

Inscriptions: To the side with the cat and butterfly, upper left, ‘Jixiang (lucky, auspicious)’.

Provenance: From a private collection in Texas, USA.
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, small nibbles to mouth and foot, the stone with natural fissures, some of which may have developed into small hairline cracks over time.

Stopper: Amethyst, black platelet, stained and carved spoon
Weight: 53.3 g
Dimensions: Height incl. stopper 74 mm, Diameter neck 12 mm and mouth 7 mm

Cats and butterflies are symbols of longevity. The cat (mao) is a homonym for ‘seventy’, while the butterfly (die) shares the same sound as ‘eighty’. Together, they form a rebus for maodie. This term implies that one would live to be seventy or eighty — considered high age in ancient China.

Expert’s note: A Mohs hardness test performed on the present bottle showed a hardness of 7. The hardness range listed on the Mohs scale for jadeite is 6 to 7.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related but smaller white jade snuff bottle, dated to the 18th century, with a very similar carving of a cat and butterfly, at Sotheby’s London in Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on 15 May 2013, lot 301, sold for GBP 3,750.

清代黃翡翠“小貓撲蝶”圖鼻烟壺
中國，十九世紀。掏膛良好，圓柱形頸部，矩形圓角，收腰，短圈足。一面淺浮雕小貓撲蝶圖，另一面騰躍的鯉魚，下面是一個小的陰陽符號。 暖黃色調的半透明翡翠石料，散佈著暗色斑點和白色絮狀物。

題款: 小貓撲蝶的一面可見“吉祥”字樣

來源：美國德克薩斯私人收藏。
品相：狀況非常好，有輕微磨損，壺嘴和圈足有小磕損，石料有天然脈理，隨著時間的推移，其中一些裂縫可能會發展成細小的裂縫。

壺蓋：紫晶，黑色蓋片，染色和雕刻的勺子
重量：53.3 克
尺寸：含蓋高74 毫米, 頸部直徑12 毫米 與壺口直徑7 毫米

專家注釋：對本瓶進行的摩氏硬度測試顯示硬度為 7。而對於翡翠在摩氏硬度範圍內列出的硬度範圍為 6 至 7。

拍賣結果比較：一件相近但稍小的白玉鼻烟壺，十八世紀，同樣雕刻著小貓撲蝶，見倫敦蘇富比 Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art 2013年5月15日 lot 301, 售價GBP 3,750。