Standing Salt with Cover

The ornamentation on this standing salt with cover—with its grotesque masks, cornucopias, and clusters of grapes and other fruits—alludes to the opulence of 16th-century banquets. While the appearance of salt, a highly desirable and expensive commodity in medieval and early-modern Europe, announced the status of the host, a guest’s position in relation to the placement of the salt at the table also signaled his or her status, since only the most important guests were seated "above the salt."