A WHITE GLAZED PORCELAIN ‘TWO RAMS’ SNUFF BOTTLE, BY WANG BINGRONGChina, c. 1820-1860. Of ovoid form, supported on a slightly spreading foot with concave base and rising to a waisted neck with flat everted rim. Finely molded, carved and incised in high relief with a ram and its young under a flowering prunus tree growing by craggy rockwork and bamboo. The matching stopper with foliate decorations. Covered overall in a creamy white glaze save for the foot rim.Inscriptions: To the base, signed ‘Wang Bingrong’ in raised characters.Provenance: English trade.Condition: Excellent condition with minor old wear and some firing irregularities.Stopper: White-glazed porcelainWeight: 87.1 gDimensions: Height incl. stopper 76 mm. Diameter neck 15 mm and mouth 8 mmWang Bingrong, active during the Daoguang and Xianfeng periods, was one of the finest of a small group of independent ceramicists in Jingdezhen of the period. At that time, the porcelain industry initiated carving on snuff bottles as a diversification from using earlier practices of molding. The intricate, detailed, and layered relief of the present bottle could only be achieved by careful and steady carving.Auction resultparison:Type: RelatedAuction: San Francisco, 22 June 2010, lot 2042Price: USD 5,795 or approx.EUR 7,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: A white glazed soft-paste porcelain snuff bottle, Wang Bingrong style王炳榮款白釉雙羊鼻煙壺中國，約1820-1860年。鼻煙壺直頸，唇口，豐肩，圈足。外壁雕刻樹下一隻羊和他的幼崽。壺蓋有葉狀紋。通體施白釉。圈足内“王炳榮”款。