Salt Cellars - Tiny Masterpieces
An exhibition of spice sets and salt cellars from the valuable and diverse collection of the Cracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka.
Secondary crystal halite by UnknownCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
Z Wieliczki do solniczki
Wieliczka is famous for its Salt Mine. This is also the location of the Saltworks Castle, home of the royal salt company. Today, the castle houses a display of valuable salt cellars.
Salt cellar from Peru (1770) by UnknownCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
The salt trade was of international importance, and richly decorated salt vessels were among the most important tableware that showed the status of the owners.
Agate chalice-shaped salt cellar (1500) by UnknownCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
Salt cellars in the vault
Valuable salt cellars, along with other precious vessels, were kept in vaults and displayed to guests at royal events and feasts.
Court ceremonies
In the Middle Ages, the salt cellar was placed on the table in front of the most important person at the feast. It marked their place and emphasised social standing. Hence the saying “sit behind the salt”, i.e. in the most important place.
Gothic salt-cellar made of agate (late 15th Century) by UnknownCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
King's dilemmas
In 1378, King Charles V of France was faced with the dilemma of who to place the salt cellar in front of: himself or one of his crowned guests?
The King had invited Roman Emperor Charles IV and King Wenceslas IV of Bohemia and Germany to the feast. To avoid diplomatic problems, he ordered a salt cellar to be placed in front of each ruler. And he had plenty to choose from - there were 46 salt cellars in his vault.
Protection against poisoning
Closed salt cellars had an advantage over open ones as they allowed better protection of the contents from possible poisoners. This was very important at a time when rulers lived in constant fear for their lives and poison was easily mixed with salt.
Salt cellars in the shape of hexagon (1590-94) by Hans I ArnoldCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
Capital of European goldsmithing
Augsburg, together with Nuremberg, dominated European goldsmith production from as early as the 15th century. The salt cellars on display are some of the most important Mannerist goldsmith's creations. These outstanding works are signed with the mark of master Hans I Arnold.
Fashionable hunting scenes
Cast scenes of dogs chasing a wolf and deer are depicted in a woodland landscape, with a lakeshore and distant buildings. Hunting motifs, fashionable at the time, make use of graphic designs that were popular in goldsmiths' workshops throughout Europe.
Salt cellar with grotesques (1570) by Fontana Patanazzi?Cracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
Chimeras and Evangelists
The salt cellar impresses onlookers with its unusual combination of antique and Christian motifs. The decoration features chimeras, monsters, Cupid but also Evangelists. Such vessels were made to order for discerning patrons who appreciated the splendour of Urbino majolica.
New forms of salt cellars
Salt cellars kept taking new shapes. In the Gothic era, they took the form of an hourglass, then a wide basin on a foot, a cylindrical casket and, from the late 16th century, in the Baroque era, a bell.
European porcelain centre
Meissen became famous for its porcelain figurines, especially in the times of sculptor and workshop manager Johann Joachim Kaendler, who started the trend for porcelain figurines.
A rococo spice service (1760) by UnknownCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
Sophisticated table decoration
For centuries, great importance was attached to the table layout. In the 18th century, such a composition was created with silverware, candelabras and mirrors, flower baskets and sugar figurines made especially for the occasion, as well as figural porcelain salt cellars.
One of the largest porcelain spice set
measuring 60 x 57 x 47 cm is an excellent example of table centrepiece decoration featured on European Baroque tables from the 2nd half of the 17th century, which became the height of fashion during the Rococo era. Perfect mastery of the secrets of the ceramic art made it possible to create such a large composition.
measuring 60 x 57 x 47 cm is an excellent example of table centrepiece decoration featured on European Baroque tables from the 2nd half of the 17th century, which became the height of fashion during the Rococo era. Perfect mastery of the secrets of the ceramic art made it possible to create such a large composition.
Salt cellar in the shape of the Turks (c. 1750) by Johann Joachim KändlerCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
Rococo charm
The representations of the Turkish couple are a fine example of fine porcelain figurines that were considered to best reflect the charm of the Rococo era.
They could be used to create different compositions in the middle of the table to entertain the banqueters and give them a topic for conversation. This was particularly true for themes from exotic countries in the East, which had been inaccessible to Europeans for centuries.
Travel set with a salt cellar (1690) by Peter Neuss II, Tobias HallaicherCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
Salt cellar for travel
During the Baroque era, travel briefcases became popular, which allowed for easy transport of items considered absolutely essential for travel. Such luxury accessories included salt cellars.
Salt cellar as a gift
Silverware was the pride of every noble lady. It was customary for the husband to give such a set to his wife as a “morning gift” after their wedding night.
Pair of oval silver salts on goat feet (1786) by UnknownCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
In addition to fancy pieces placed in the centre of the table, smaller salt dishes began to appear on the table over time and they paved the way for everyday-use salt cellars.
A salt cellar for a middle-class family
Sitting on a shared pedestal, in the 19th century spice sets became an indispensable part of a properly laid table of even a middle-class family.
Simplified form
As a result of further developments, from around the turn of the 20th century onwards, emerging models only included three containers.
Art Nouveau salt cellar (1902) by Louis Comfort TiffanyCracow Saltworks Museum in Wieliczka
Delicate Tiffany glass
The beautiful Art Nouveau vessels in the form of a bowl with an irregularly wavy edge are very delicate and fragile. Such iridescent luxury glassware, often asymmetrical in the spirit of Art Nouveau, ensured Tiffany's worldwide fame at the turn of the 20th century.
Favrile glass vases became extremely popular after winning a prize at the Paris World Exhibition in 1900. Later that year, they were included in the collections of forty-three of the world's major museums.
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