Provenance:Inherited from the Garry P. Mack collection.Property from the Collection of David Billings and Beverly Hall Billings, Nantucket, Massachusetts.Creating a collection can be the work of a lifetime and cherishing another's life through his collection is something special indeed. My father's passion for collecting Chinese art infused everything he did. He could weave a snuff bottle story into any aspect of his eclectic world from the kitchen to the chemical lab. Stories still abound about overcrowded and cluttered rooms in the home of this talented and temperamental Renaissance man, but that was years ago and I have shared some of these reflections in other arenas. For now, in ‘the spirit of the chase’ aspect of collecting, I would like to offer an unorthodox haiku to celebrate this occasion.Can I put new stoppersOn old bottles and Call them mine?Or is it time to empty boxes And pursue the divine?Beverly Hall BillingsNantucket, Massachusetts