Description
Description: Chinese gold-plated silver snuff bottle with mother of pearl inlays. One of the big inlays has an incised poem of the Tang dynasty and the other one has an incised scene showing a path going to a rocky cave. The poem and the scene are related as explained in the Notes here below
Foot/base: Recessed flat base
Mark: Silver
Dating: 1918
Material: Gold-gilded silver
Size: 56 mm high
Stopper: Original matching mother of pearl with gold-gilded collar and spoon
Provenance: Antiquarian market from Piemonte
References:
Notes: The inscription is a poem by Zhang Xu (张旭), a Tang dynasty poet. The title of the poem is Peach Blossom Stream/Brook (桃花溪). It uses the surrounding to suggest a mode of hermitage. Zhang Xu was not a very popular poet in the Tang period, but he was regarded as one of the greatest calligraphers of his era. His specialty style was Cao Shu, the cursive script. His calligraphy was so impressive that a famous poet at that time, Du Fu (杜甫) honored him as the saint of Cao Shu. Qianlong Emperor was also a big fan of his calligraphy.
The original poem is as follows:
隐隐飞桥隔野烟，
石矶西畔问渔船。
桃花尽日随流水，
洞在清溪何处边?
At the end the inscription reads “carved in spring of the year Wu Wu”, which is 1918. There is a red seal with the character “Qing”.
An attempt of the poem’s translation:
“I could hardly see the bridge as it was hidden by the smoke.
I asked the fisherman at the river bank.
The peach flowers flowed with the water.
Where is the cave besides the clear stream?”
The background of this poem actually cross referenced to a popular article, Tao Hua Yuan Ji (桃花源记) that was written by the famous poet Tao Yuan Ming (陶渊明) of the Jin (晋) dynasty (AD 265 – 420).
In the article, a fisherman lost his way one day and stumbled across a cave hidden in a forest of beautiful peach trees. This cave led to a hidden village. The villagers live a harmony and peaceful live and informed him that they had migrated there since the Qin dynasty (221 – 206 BC). They were totally isolated from the rest of the world and did not know of any happenings or changes outside. They extended their warn hospitality to the fisherman who stayed for a few days. After his return, he informed his friends of this forgotten land. Many were interested to pay it a visit too. However, the fisherman was unable to locate the village anymore. So, in this poem, the author is asking the fisherman whether does he know of the cave in the story?
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