In the 17th century, salt was a precious substance for which elaborate silver display pieces were made. This masterpiece, by the Utrecht silver smith Adam van Vianen, is embossed in a single piece of silver.
The cellar consists of a salt dish with lobule ornaments, which is supported by a female Bacchant, a nymph of the God Bacchus. She is seated on the back of a satyr and rests on a foot with lobule ornaments and shells. A vine rises behind the frolicking figures and its leaves cover the bottom of the dish.

Specifications
Title | salt cellar |
---|---|
Material and technique | Silver |
Object type |
Salt cellar
> Salt set
> Pepper and salt set
> Set
> Tableware
> Kitchen and household
> Utensil
|
Location | This object is in storage |
Dimensions |
Height 20,6 cm Diameter 11,2 cm |
---|---|
Artists |
Goldsmith:
Adam van Vianen
|
Accession number | MBZ 195 (KN&V) |
Credits | Acquired with the collection of D.G. van Beuningen, 1958 |
Department | Applied Arts & Design |
Acquisition date | 1958 |
Creation date | in 1622 |
Collector | Collector / D.G. van Beuningen |
Research |
Show research Alma |
Material | |
Object | |
Geographical origin | The Netherlands > Western Europe > Europe |
Place of manufacture | Utrecht > The Netherlands > Western Europe > Europe |