Minneapolis Institute of Art

Double snuff bottle with dragon designs

China

Medium

Cloisonne

Department

Asian Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Bottles like this one were used in late imperial China to hold snuff—powdered tobacco inhaled through the nose. Though functional utensils, the bottles displayed high levels of craftsmanship and artistry and were seen as small works of art and status symbols for the user. This example is made with the cloisonne technique, in which a metal object is decorated with colorful enamel separated by thin, delicate copper inlaid wire to form an ornate design. There appears to be two bottles, but they are in fact conjoined. Here, against a backdrop of tiny, stylized clouds, a green dragon and a yellow dragon decorate either side of the conjoined bottles. While they generally resemble ancient dragon depictions, their spirituality is reduced by their presence on a functional, everyday object meant to convey wealth more than religious meaning. The brightly colored, almost cartoonish design gives the impression of dragons as amusing, fun designs, reflecting their shift in status to decorative elements. Asia

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