An Enamel On Copper Snuff Bottle, Imperial, Attributed to the Palace Workshops, Beijing, Qianlong Mark And Period (1736-1795), est. US$250/350,000.

One of the highlights of Sotheby’s fall 2010 Asia Week sales in New York will be a single owner offering of the Joe Grimberg Collection of Chinese Snuff Bottles on 14 September 2010. The bottles date from as early as the beginning of the 18th century and reflect a broad variety of Chinese decorative arts from glass and porcelain to jade. Mr. Grimberg bought only from respected dealers and auction houses, meaning that many of the bottles have extensive and impressive provenance, and, at times imperial attribution. Mr. Grimberg developed a compact collection focused only on snuff bottles of the highest quality; therefore to ensure that his collection didn’t grow to over 200 bottles one would leave the collection every time a fresh snuff bottle was added. Overall the auction is estimated to fetch up to US$6.5 million.

Henry Howard-Sneyd, Sotheby’s Vice Chairman, Asian Art, said: “This is a very personal collection that reflects the superb taste and eye of Joe Grimberg. The sale in September will be the first time for a number of years Sotheby’s New York has held a dedicated snuff bottle auction, so I am delighted to be offering such an important and distinguished collection. These jewel-like objects showcase the skills of Chinese artists and artisans practicing almost all the many different media from porcelain to jade. We are excited to be able to showcase such a wide variety represented by this breathtaking collection in the sale.”

Among the highlights of the Collection is An Enamel On Copper Snuff Bottle, Imperial, Palace Workshops, Beijing, Qianlong Mark And Period (1736-1795). The bottle would possibly have been owned by the Qianlong emperor; he was fascinated by European culture and in fact, several Jesuit missionaries, who were skilled artists, were attached to the Court and drove many artistic and technical developments. European subjects, particularly young women, are depicted on snuff bottles, porcelain, and other enamel ware, and several famous examples are in museum collections, such as the National Palace Museum in Taipei and in the Palace Museum in Beijing (est. $250/350,000).