Description
Glass; with a very wide mouth, the bubble-suffused ground overlaid in transparent ruby-red on each side with four fan-tailed carp swimming among aquatic fronds, the deep foot rim crisply carved.
The undulating plump bodies of the carp, each in a differing attitude, have invested the scene with a realistic feeling of movement and the bulging eyes are an unusual detail. Although the bottle has a wide mouth, often a sign of early manufacture, the bubble-suffused ground was a feature that became more common towards the end of the eighteenth century.
Fish symbolise abundance and this symbolism is magnified by the presence of eight, a potent symbol of wealth.
