A SUBLIME ‘RED-TAILED HAWK AND DOG’ CAMEO AGATE SNUFF BOTTLE, QING DYNASTY

Translucent stone of light-brown color with a dark-brown, almost black layer carved in very high relief and incised with fine detail, this layer bearing a hue of cinnabar-red cleverly used to enhance the depiction
China, 1740-1840

One of the best cameo agates this author has ever handled: A gnarly pine tree springing from craggy rocks, with a hawk hiding in it, his left claw raised and ready for attack. Just a bit further down we see a small dog looking back, confronting the hawk. A thriller captured in stone, where the observer can only speculate on what will happen next…
The carving of this rare subject is as masterly as any known, with crisp and confident control of the medium and imaginative use of the material. The falcon is shown with minuscule detail such as its typical nostril or even the tooth-like process of the bill, both features barely visible to the naked eye, yet clearly present when looked at under a strong magnifying glass.
Another important and highly unusual detail is the tail-feather carved from a hue of cinnabar-red, the only inclusion of such color existing in the cameo layer. The carver certainly has planned early in the process to add this red tail feather to the bird, therefore his intention must have been to depict a red-tailed hawk. Interestingly, this bird of prey is native of the Americas only and was unknown in China until the later 18th century, when trade between China and America started to get traction and the first illustrations of native American animals came to China. In any case, its precisely such fine and rare details that make a bottle special, if not unique, details that would have been simply ignored by many an artist.

Shape: Flattened rectangular form with rounded shoulders
Hollowing: Superb, with inner contours perfectly matching the shape, and the hollowing going well below the shoulders
Mouth, neck and lip: Short cylindric and sprawling neck with convex top and slanted lip, small mouth
Base: Oval base with raised foot rim
Design, marks, school: Official school
Stopper: Agate cabochon, spoon
Height of the bottle with stopper: 6.7 cm.
Width of the mouth: 6 mm.
Width of the neck: 16 mm.
Weight: 49.5 grams
Condition: Very good with only microscopic nibbles at the inner lip
Provenance: From a Beverly Hills, California, private estate

蜜糖瑪瑙巧雕紅尾鷹與狗鼻烟壺，清代
半透明淺褐色，深褐色近黑色皮深浮雕，細節入微，巧妙利用朱紅色肌理增强畫面靈動
中國， 1740-1840
壺型： 扁平方形，圓肩
掏膛： 隨形而作，肩下部空心
壺口、頸與唇部： 短直頸，壺口表面凸出，斜唇，小口
底足： 橢圓高圈足
造型、落款及流派： 官家工坊
壺蓋： 瑪瑙，小杓
壺高（含壺蓋）： 6.7 厘米
口徑： 6 毫米
壺頸寬： 16 毫米
重量： 49.5 克
品相：内唇沿極微小磕碰処
來源：加利福尼亞比佛利山私人產業