Last weekend at the Rose Bowl a customer was thrilled to tell me she had just learned of the use of salt cellars. It occurred to me, maybe you would all enjoy seeing my collection. As I mentioned, the collection was a gift but I was given the pleasure of selecting every piece.
The beautiful sterling salt pictured above is my favorite. It is a footed rectangular bowl with two tiny birds perched on either end. I have spent the day researching it and so far I have no information to share. I imagine it is quite old but I dare not date it. Perhaps it is a hundred years old or even older. It is shown here with one of my Chantilly salt spoons.
In my family, these tiny works of art have always been simply referred to as "salts". I have learned today that the terms "standing salt" and "open salt" are also used. They are used at each individual place at a dinner table and filled with table salt. Their use seems to date back almost to the beginning of time.
When salt was considered a coveted commodity it deserved a grand presentation. In the 1950's salts became a popular collectors item and somewhat fell out of practical use. Today they are having a bit of a comeback due to the use of coarse salt and specialty salts.
This group of clear glass salts shown on the right includes pressed glass, cut glass and crystal. The larger bowl in the middle is a master salt and would be used for the entire table.
Here on the right, is a selection of luster ware salts. Once again there is a master salt in the middle. Sometimes people call these larger salts nut bowls but they are intended for serving salt. The blue bowl on the left and the lavender bowl on the right are both three footed salts. The blue one is German and the lavender is from Japan. The square dish at the bottom is Noritake and hand painted. It shows the M on the bottom for Morimura Brothers. The oval salt at the top is also a hand painted Noritake of the same era. This mark goes back to 1918 although these two pieces may not be that old.
Here is another master salt from Japan. The blue and yellow rimmed salt on the left is one I have added to the collection. It belonged to my favorite aunt and she displayed it on a tiny wooden pedestal. It is marked "Made in Japan". The small gold rimmed white salt is another that is old. It is a three footed bowl that is Imperial Nippon and also hand painted.
This is part of a large set I purchased at an estate sale here in Orange County several years ago. I held onto this set of six gold salt cellars. They are small, a little over an inch across and quite lovely.
To the left are three Belleek salts and one mother-of-pearl bowl. The mother-of-pearl at the top of the picture is very small and beautifully carved. The handle of the matching spoon had been broken over the years but little girls think it is just their size!
The Belleek shell on the left is perhaps the most beautiful in the collection. The underside of the shell is quite detailed and the salt cellar is sitting on three tiny china shells. The inside of the bowl is yellow.
Belleek Pottery dates back to 1857 in County Fermanagh, Ireland. The company has gone through many changes and Belleek is still made today. My pieces are not terribly old but they are very pretty. Being Irish myself, I have a special place in my heart for these salts and love using them.
The chicken has to be the most whimsical in the collection. This design is extremely popular not only for salt cellars but many other pieces of tableware. My chicken is Jadeite and still has her painted eyes and most of the red comb on her head. She is sitting in a Jadeite basket was one of my daughter's favorites. The small Jadeite salt at the bottom has a star design in the bottom. These clear glass salts complete my collection. There are several cut glass salts here and on the middle right is a delicate salt cellar on a little pedestal. There is a grape leaf at the upper left and a beautiful cut glass bowl in the middle.
Collecting salt cellars is a fun and rather inexpensive hobby. True the sterling silver salts can run over one hundred dollars there are plenty of salts available for under ten dollars. They can be beautiful in their simplicity or very elaborately painted. They do not take up a lot of room so it is the perfect collection for an apartment dweller and you can actually use your collection. Your dinner guests will be delighted!
