Porcelain Bottle with Moulded Mock-Ring Handles

Porcelain bottle with famille rose enamel decorated roundels.  The front depicts a young couple, the male on one knee offering a gift to the female sitting before him.  The reverse panel depicts a middle-aged couple in front of an altar, most likely providing offerings to ancestor spirits.  These images are very interesting in that they provide a good insight to elements of dress and ritual during this period.  There are molded mock-ring handles on each side of the bottle, and each mask is slightly different in style.  The lip is rounded flat, and the interior of the bottle is nicely glazed.  The gently splayed oval foot is flat and has a three-character hall mark (caixiu tang – Hall of Brilliant Elegance) in red.  The stopper is a cabochon of aventurine/gold stone set in a brass collar with a metal spoon.