Lot 9

[COLLECTION OF PROF. J. GILBERT & CORA MCALLISTER] CHINESE INSCRIBED BLUE-OVERLAY TRANSLUCENT WHITE GLASS 'BOGU' SNUFF BOTTLE

YANGZHOU SCHOOL, QING DYNASTY, 19TH CENTURY

Fine Asian Works of Art

Auction: 07 November 2025 from 10:00 GMT

Estimate: £800 - £1,200

Description

清揚州作白地套藍料博古紋鼻煙壺

款識：方吉和作；小雲

of flattened rounded form, carved as a single overlay, on one main side with two bats hovering about an incense burner alongside teapot, potted flowers and blossoming chrysanthemums on branches, all below a four-character Fang Ji He Zuo (made by Fang Jihe) in seal script, the reverse decorated with a flying bird, two butterflies, two fruits and one dog on tree trunk, the left side with an oval seal containing two-character Xiao Yun (little cloud), with stopper

Dimensions

height: 5cm; 5.7cm with stopper

Provenance

Collection of Prof. J. Gilbert & Cora McAllister, thence by descent based in England. With collector's handwritten note and Collector's Number 262, acquired in July 1977 by “RO”.

Dr. J. Gilbert McAllister (1904–1993) was Emeritus Professor in Anthropology at the University of Texas. Primarily a cultural anthropologist, he also carried out significant archaeological research. Cora McAllister (1904-1995) graduated from the University of Texas in 1924 as a Member of Phi Beta Kappa. In 1933–1934, she and Gilbert lived amongst Kiowa-Apache Indians in Oklahoma, where Gilbert conducted field research. In 1935, Gilbert was lured back to the University of Texas, where, by 1935, he became Chairman of the department and head of a large archaeological program. There, Gilbert (or Dr. Mac as he was affectionately known by his students) made his name as an archaeological administrator and especially as a remarkable teacher for over 33 years until his retirement in 1968. In a Memorial Resolution Committee Memorandum, it is noted that he had a “massive integrity about him” and “we talk about role models these days. He was one of the good ones.”

Cora and Gilbert’s large and eclectic collection was informed by a deep love for Asian cultures and antiquities, coupled with a scholarly approach. Their collection spanned vast time periods, materials, and included cultures of China, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia and more. The collection was mostly acquired in the 1960s and 1970s, variously from Cora and Gilbert’s friends and fellow academics who made trips to Asia (some of whom were commissioned specifically by Gilbert), their usual dealers and contacts, as well as from fellow collectors.

For more information about Dr and Ms McAllister, please visit: https://shaybo-therisingtide.blogspot.com/2014/08/j-gilbert-mcallister-memorial.html?m=1

Footnote

Yangzhou School of glass overlay bottles exhibits finely carved scenes and seal marks through a thin layer of glass to a solid ground tone. See H. Moss and S. Sargent, "The World in a Bottle in the World at the End of the Qing Empire. Part 2: Yangzhou Overlay Glass," Journal of the International Chinese Snuff Bottle Society, Baltimore, Spring 2011, pp. 22-29. Comparable examples all attributed to Yangzhou School were sold: one was at the Jimeng Shanfang Collection and sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 10-17 August 2021, lot 1805; one from the Rachelle R. Holden Collection and sold at Christie's New York, 24 Mar 2022, lot 881; and further one from the Collection of Emmanuel Dimitri Gran, sold at Bonhams New York, 17 March 2014, lot 8003.