Snuff Bottle with Eighteen Luohan,Ceramic, Late Qing Dynasty (late 19th-early 20th)
H 7.7cm, W.3.8cm
Cat.255475
In the 17th to 19th centuries, taking tobacco in the form of snuff became popular in China, just as it did in Europe. This snuff bottle is made of white porcelain with a green jadeite cap. Eighteen Luohan (Arhats, Buddha's disciples) are carved on it. Porcelain is one of the main materials for making snuff bottles, however, white porcelain like this, which is only partially glazed, is not very common. The artist only painted the glaze on the robes of a few Luohan, on religious implements, and clouds on the bottle. The glaze on these areas reflects a different texture and luster.
The eighteen Luohan is a popular theme in the Ming (1368-1644 AD) and Qing (1644-1911 AD) dynasties. They appear on various textiles, embroidery, sculptures, and ceramics, as well as on artistic supplies such as brush pots and ink cakes. Since it became a very widespread and auspicious motif and is combined with other auspicious symbols, it shows that Buddhist symbolism was becoming popular in secular contexts in late imperial China.
Although the faces and facial expressions of the eighteen Luohan resemble each other, the artist tried to use different postures and religious tools to reveal the distinct characters of each Luohan. Unlike sculptures of the eighteen Luohan in temples, though, their popular representations in decorated arts cannot really be identified by name. In this case, the eighteen Luohan are depicted with a cloud background, which is a common decoration for the eighteen Luohan and shows that these figures have a status that is in-between the human and the divine.
(Commentary by Yuhang Li)