AN INSIDE-PAINTED ROCK CRYSTAL 'TROMPE L'OEIL' SNUFF BOTTLE, BY MA SHAOXUAN (1867-1939), DATED 1898 Published:
Holden, Rivers and Mountains Far From the World - The Rachelle R. Holden Collection, A Personal Commentary, New York, 1994, pp. 314-315, no. 139 (erroneously stating the bottle was once in the Mary and George Bloch Collection)

China. Of flattened form, with slightly concave top, finely painted on the interior on one main side with a collection of old, tattered and inscribed paper items, including envelopes, books and rubbings, the reverse painted with an excerpt from a Tang dynasty historical chronicle.

Inscriptions: Signed 'Ma Shaoxuan', one seal, and dated to the third month of the Wuxu year (corresponding to 1898)

Provenance: Robert Kleiner, London, 1992. Rachelle R. Holden Collection, New York, acquired from the above. A collector's label from Rachelle Holden with inventory number '244' to the base. Robert Kleiner (1948-2014) was an important expert on Chinese snuff bottles, beginning his long career at Sotheby's Chinese Art department in London. Along with Hugh Moss and Bob Hall, Robert Kleiner became a key advisor to the Mary and George Bloch collection, and it was Robert who wrote and produced the very first catalog of their bottles. Rachelle R. Holden (1934-2020) was a famous collector of Chinese snuff bottles. She purchased her first bottle in 1974, finding the subject fascinating as it combined all the classic forms of Chinese art, and would continue to passionately collect them for the rest of her life.
Condition: Excellent condition with only minor old wear. A few small scattered inclusions in the crystal.

Stopper: Pink tourmaline stopper, black platelet
Weight: 66.6 g
Dimensions: Height including stopper 75 mm. Diameter neck 19 mm and mouth 6 mm.

The calligraphy on the reverse side of this bottle is transcribed from the famous Tang stele by Ouyang Xun called Jiu Cheng Gong li quan ming (The Sweet Spring of Jiucheng Palace). Ouyang Xun (AD 557-641) was one of the four masters of the early Tang. The paintings on the other side include burnt and torn examples of the Jin Hui Dui and a fan-shaped painting by Yun Shouping, calligraphy from the book entitled Zuo Zhong Tang (a famous general), a torn book entitled Si Shu (essential reading for scholars), and an envelope inscribed You Shanghai Ji (posted from Shanghai).

Ma Shaoxuan (1867-1939) was one of the most technically accomplished artists of the Beijing school of painting, which was first started by Zhou Leyuan and included other leading artists such as Ding Erzhong, Ye Zhongsan and Ziyizi. Ma's famous monochromatic portrait bottles of leading Qing officials and personalities were highly sought after among the influential minority of his day and continue to be among the most coveted of all inside-painted bottles. Executed only in black ink, with the use of vermillion solely for seals, each portrait is a technically impeccable, photographic likeness of the sitter. Ma's extraordinary renown led to his being commissioned in 1911 to paint two portraits of the young Xuantong Emperor.

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related rock crystal snuff bottle by Ma Shaoxuan, illustrated by Nancy Berliner, The 'Eight Brokens'. Chinese Trompe-l'oeil Painting, Orientations, February 1992, p. 70.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Near identical
Auction: Christie's New York, 24 March 2011, lot 1578
Price: USD 20,000 or approx. EUR 25,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An inside-painted glass snuff bottle, signed Ma Shaoxuan, dated start of the hot season in the jihai year, corresponding to 1899

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie's New York, 21 March 2013, lot 1088
Price: USD 40,000 or approx. EUR 48,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare inside-painted rock crystal snuff bottle, Ma Shaoxuan (1867-1939), Beijing, probably 1905



1898年馬少宣款水晶内畫鼻烟壺
中國。壺直口，豐肩，長方扁圓腹，橢圓形圈足。壺體為無色透明水晶為材，施以內繪技法，一面內畫彩色字畫殘片 。另一面楷書節錄唐歐陽詢書《九成宮醴泉銘》：“維貞觀六年孟夏之月，皇帝避暑乎九成之宮，此則隨之仁壽宮也，冠山抗殿，絕壑為池。節錄”。書法字體挺拔剛健，工整俊秀。

出版：Holden，《Rivers and Mountains Far From the World - The Rachelle R. Holden Collection，A Personal Commentary》，紐約，1994年，頁314-315，編號139 (錯誤認爲瓶子曾經在瑪麗和喬治布洛赫收藏中) 。

款識：馬少宣作；鈴印「少宣」

來源：1992年紐約 R. Holden 收藏購於購於倫敦Robert Kleiner & Co. Ltd.藝廊。底部可見Rachelle Holden 收藏標籤，上有編號 '244'。英國私人收藏，購於倫敦Robert Kleiner & Co. Ltd.藝廊。隨附一份2000年11月20日開具的發票副本，確認了相關描述和斷代。Robert Kleiner (1948-2014) 是一位重要的中國鼻烟壺專家和古玩商，在倫敦蘇富比中國藝術部開始了他的職業生涯。Robert Kleiner與 Hugh Moss 和 Bob Hall 一起，成為 Mary 和 George Bloch 收藏的重要顧問，他編寫並製作了他們的第一個鼻烟壺目錄。Rachelle R. Holden（1934-2020年）是著名的中國鼻烟壺收藏家。 她於 1974 年購買了她的第一個鼻烟壺，從而發現了鼻烟壺其迷人之處，因為它結合了中國藝術的所有經典形式。之後，她持續不斷地收集鼻烟壺。
品相：品相極好，只有輕微的磨損。晶體中散佈著一些小的夾雜物。

壺蓋：粉紅碧璽，黑色托片
重量：66.6 克
尺寸：高 （含蓋）75 毫米，頸部直徑19 毫米及壺口直徑6 毫米

馬少宣（1867-1939）是清代京派內畫四大畫師之一（另外三位是葉仲三、周樂元、丁二仲），其內畫鼻烟壺書畫並茂、筆法精湛。名人肖像是馬少宣十分擅長的內畫主題，也是其內畫作品極爲重要的一個部分，他僅用黑墨運筆著色，使用朱紅色作為印章，十分寫實，頗有西式素描半身肖像的風格。1911 年，馬少宣的非凡聲望使能夠為宣統皇帝畫兩幅肖像。

文獻比較：
比較一件非常相近的馬少宣款水晶鼻烟壺，見Nancy Berliner，〈The 'Eight Brokens'. Chinese Trompe-l'oeil Painting〉，《Orientations》，1992年2月，頁70。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：幾乎相同
拍賣：紐約佳士得，2011年3月24日，lot 1578
價格：USD 20,000（相當於今日EUR 25,000）
描述：乙亥初夏（推測為1899年）馬少宣款玻璃內畫鼻烟壺

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：紐約佳士得，2013年3月21日，lot 1088
價格：USD 40,000（相當於今日EUR 48,000）
描述：約1905年北京馬少宣款水晶內畫鼻烟壺