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Written by Gilles Lorin of Asiantiques 

Chinese snuffBottles

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Chinese snuff bottles weremade during the entire Qingdynasty (1644-1912). The

 production was interrupted after the year 1912 but started again,as is ofcially acknowledged,in mainland China after the year 

1949. It is also possible to nd bottles dated from the 1920s andthe 1930s, indicating that theywere being made throughout the20th century.

Tobacco was brought to China  by the Europeans (who hadthemselves found it after thediscovery of America) at theend of the Ming dynasty (16thcentury/rst part of the 17thcentury). The use of tobaccospread sufciently in China

  because the last Ming emperor,Chongzhen (1627-1644), issuedve edicts from 1638 through1642 forbidding its use. Despitethe very stiff punishment of decapitation for the sellers, thoseedicts do not seem to have beenvery effective.

Snuff, tobacco ground into avery ne powder and eventuallyenhanced with owers, spices or herbs (mint, jasmine, camphor,roses, etc.), was sniffed into thenostrils. Its use seems to havespread slowly during the last part of the 17th century and the  beginning of the 18th century  but developed tremendouslyafter Emperor Qianlong (1736-1795) declared it fashionable for himself and for his court. TheChinese, even more than theEuropeans, believed that tobaccoinhaled in the form of snuff hadmedicinal qualities and could

cure colds, indigestion or other illnesses. Emperor Qianlongtook snuff for his headaches.It is therefore normal that theChinese rst used medicinal  bottles to store the snuff. TheEuropean snuffboxes were unt  because the warm and humidclimate in China caused the snuff to cake and lose its ne texture.Those medicinal bottles wererst adapted by adding a smallspoon attached to the cork and

the top for measuring a smallamount of snuff.

Progressively the shape of the bottles (cylindrical at rst)evolved into many differenttypes, as their size was adaptedto their uses. Men would carry

regular bottles (mostly 2 ½” to3 ¼”), ladies would have small bottles (1 ¼” to 2 ¼”) and table bottles would reach up to 5” or 6”. Some people liked to carrytwin bottles and, but rarely,multiple bottles in order to enjoyvarious aromas.

The rst users of tobaccowere the people who were incontact with the Europeans inthe sea harbors. But it soondeveloped into a habit mainly

appreciated by the emperor andhis courtesans. Therefore, thesnuff bottles soon became small,  precious objects and their usegave way to the developmentof a very precise “etiquette” for taking and snifng the tobacco,as well as which type of bottleto use at what precise time.Jade and porcelain were used inwinter, glass and agate in spring,  bamboo in summer and so on.The snuff bottles were used asgifts or to buy favors of ofcials.The production of snuff bottleswas done by workshops, someof which, using the most skilledworkers, were established

in the imperial palace byEmperor Kangxi (1662-1722)and his successors, EmperorsYongzheng (1723-1735) andQianlong (1736-1795). Severaworkers were involved in the production of a snuff bottle. The

apprentices would cut the stoneand start to shape the bottlespecialists would hollow thecavity (a very important task)then others would polish it.The most skilled workers werethe ones who would createthe decoration. Almost anymaterial was used, from the most  precious, like jade, to the mosmodest, like bamboo.

Glass was a prime material forthe manufacture of snuff bottles

It was either molded, blown orcarved. It was appreciated bothfor itself and for its capacity toimitate other materials, such as precious or semi-precious stones.At rst the Chinese were verysatised with glass and stone bottles and it is only during theJiaqing reign (1796-1820) at the  beginning of the 19th centurthat the production of porcelain  bottles developed and probablyreached its peak.

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Article courtesy of Gilles Lorinof Asiantiques. For more

information please call(407) 362-1025, email

glorin@asiantiques.comor visit www.asiantiques.com.