With their unique beauty and design, Chinese snuff bottles are admired by art fans the world over. What started as a convenient item for holding powdered tobacco later attracted generations of artists who decorated snuff bottles with some of the most exquisite, sophisticated Chinese artwork. Though incredibly small, snuff bottles have been in huge demand both in the past and today. Shoppers in Beijing have a unique opportunity to check out the elegant snuff bottles in the city's local shops.
Despite its small size, a snuff bottle can be decorated with almost all types of art, including paintings, calligraphy, cloisonne, or lacquer. To symbolize their wealth and power, rich people often used very precious materials, like gold, jade, emeralds, pearls, or ivory to make their snuff bottles and decorated them with images made by great artisans. Art fans are sometimes awed by the exquisite, breathtaking beauty of a custom-made snuff bottle.
Though a uniquely Chinese item, the snuff bottle was invented based on the snuff box used by the Europeans. It is believed that they were first made in the late Ming dynasty, right after Chinese began to smoke tobacco imported from the west. In the early Qing dynasty, it became very popular, as people started to use exquisitely made snuff bottles to show their status and taste in art.
Smoking tobacco was actually banned during the Qing dynasty, but an exception was made for people who used snuff bottles and inhaled tobacco through their nose, because snuff was believed to be an effective remedy that could cure many illnesses. Many Chinese emperors during this period were lovers of snuff bottles. The Emperor Daoguang even ordered a workshop be built inside the Forbidden City to produce such bottles. In the 1970s, Artists revived the art of making snuff bottles after decades of political turmoil and began to use modern techniques to create new kinds of bottles.
Art connoisseurs especially love a unique, interesting class of snuff bottle - the "inside painted bottle." Invented in the late Qing dynasty, these bottles quickly became one of the hottest items in the art market. People like such bottles not only because of their practical value - the pictures painted inside almost never fade - but also because of their extremely complex craftsmanship - only the best of the best artisans are able to paint pictures on the inside of a bottle. Ever since the 1970s, the fever for "inside painted bottles" seems to have increased each year.
Cultural Note: There is a story concerning the origin of "inside painted bottle." The late Qianlong era of the Qing dynasty was a time when corruption was widespread in China. A low-ranking official was one of a few good people working in the government who abhorred bribery. Because he was not willing to give bribes, when he worked on an assignment in Beijing, the corrupted officials in the imperial court never took him seriously, and asked him to wait indefinitely.
The waiting was endless, and soon the official had spent all his money. Penniless, he had to move into a Buddhist temple to live with monks. He soon found that his tobacco was also running out. One day, he discovered the only tobacco left was a little powder in his snuff bottle, so he tried to use a stick to scrape it out. A monk sitting next to him noticed this, and thought of a new idea. Later, using a sharpened stick as tool, the monk experimented with painting images on the inside of snuff bottle and the first "inside painted bottle" was made.
Different materials can be used to give snuff bottles different looks. Early on, six main types of snuff bottles were categorized according to the materials used to make them. They are glass bottles, porcelain bottles, jade bottles, amber bottles, agate bottles, and tourmaline bottles. Snuff bottle lovers usually have a large collection of bottles made of all these different materials.
Shop for exquisite snuff bottles in the local shops when you are in Beijing, because they are too good to miss. Some great shops have bottles made by famous artisans in China. You can find a personal shopper to help you find the right places to go shopping.
Though a uniquely Chinese item, the snuff bottle was invented based on the snuff box used by the Europeans. It is believed that they were first made in the late Ming dynasty, right after Chinese began to smoke tobacco imported from the west. In the early Qing dynasty, it became very popular, as people started to use exquisitely made snuff bottles to show their status and taste in art.
Smoking tobacco was actually banned during the Qing dynasty, but an exception was made for people who used snuff bottles and inhaled tobacco through their nose, because snuff was believed to be an effective remedy that could cure many illnesses. Many Chinese emperors during this period were lovers of snuff bottles. The Emperor Daoguang even ordered a workshop be built inside the Forbidden City to produce such bottles. In the 1970s, Artists revived the art of making snuff bottles after decades of political turmoil and began to use modern techniques to create new kinds of bottles.
Art connoisseurs especially love a unique, interesting class of snuff bottle - the "inside painted bottle." Invented in the late Qing dynasty, these bottles quickly became one of the hottest items in the art market. People like such bottles not only because of their practical value - the pictures painted inside almost never fade - but also because of their extremely complex craftsmanship - only the best of the best artisans are able to paint pictures on the inside of a bottle. Ever since the 1970s, the fever for "inside painted bottles" seems to have increased each year.
Cultural Note: There is a story concerning the origin of "inside painted bottle." The late Qianlong era of the Qing dynasty was a time when corruption was widespread in China. A low-ranking official was one of a few good people working in the government who abhorred bribery. Because he was not willing to give bribes, when he worked on an assignment in Beijing, the corrupted officials in the imperial court never took him seriously, and asked him to wait indefinitely.
The waiting was endless, and soon the official had spent all his money. Penniless, he had to move into a Buddhist temple to live with monks. He soon found that his tobacco was also running out. One day, he discovered the only tobacco left was a little powder in his snuff bottle, so he tried to use a stick to scrape it out. A monk sitting next to him noticed this, and thought of a new idea. Later, using a sharpened stick as tool, the monk experimented with painting images on the inside of snuff bottle and the first "inside painted bottle" was made.
Shop for exquisite snuff bottles in the local shops when you are in Beijing, because they are too good to miss. Some great shops have bottles made by famous artisans in China. You can find a personal shopper to help you find the right places to go shopping.
About the Author:
A. Lao has written about Chinese arts and crafts for years. He now works with a Beijing personal shopper who helps tourists find unique Chinese items. Sometimes he plans shopping trips in Beijing.
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