When meeting friends in the streets or at home in 18th century China, it was common courtesy to offer them a pinch of snuff.

The snuff bottles, which were used to contain tobacco powder, were at the heart of fashion throughout the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

More than 450 snuff bottles made during that period are in the collection of Julie and James Li from New York, and are making their debut in Beijing at an exhibition entitled "Chinese Snuff Bottle Art" at the Poly Art Museum in the Poly Plaza, eastern Beijing.

The exhibition, which runs until October 20, is of the highest level and the largest scale among shows of snuff bottles in China in recent years, as it features the best of one of the world's greatest collections of smaller-sized artwork, said Museum Director Jiang Yingchun.

"It's fantastic to see so many exquisite and lovely little pieces of artwork in one hall," said Chen Fang, a visitor.

The snuff bottles on display, made of metal, jade, ceramics, bamboo, wood, ivory, and pieces of horn and glass, were made in various shapes and designs while carving, sculpting, painting and many other decorative techniques were employed to adorn the small vessels.

Having epitomized nearly every art form, Chinese snuff bottles were highly sought collectables and gifts for royal houses and aristocrats throughout Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries, said Ma Baoping, chairman of the board of the Poly Culture and Art Co Ltd which hosted the exhibition.

Among those displayed were two enameled copper snuff bottles with marks of Emperor Kangxi (reigned 1662-1722).

There are only about 10 snuff bottles of the kind left today, said Xia Gengqi, researcher with the Palace Museum.

One of the two, enameled with gold, was painted on either of the two principal sides with a portrait of a boy in a garden. With delicate craftsmanship, quietly elegant colours and the boys' vivid gestures and facial expressions, the object is a masterpiece of applied art in Kangxi's reign.

The other bottle, harmonious in colour, was painted with blooming lotus plants on the principal sides, with landscapes on the two narrower sides.

The two bottles, no more than 5 centimetres tall, had at the feet inscriptions in regular script kangxi yuzhi, which means they were made for Emperor Kangxi.

(China Daily September 30, 2003)