Salt Cellars for those who want to know

Remembering…salt came in a block and it was a valuable commodity.  In fact, it was used as currency and a Roman soldier might be paid a “salary.”  If he was a good soldier or a hard working employee he was said to be “worth his salt.”

Salt was not only prized as a seasoning and flavor enhancer, it was a preservative in times before refridgeration and canning.  Salt was a natural desiccant (drying agent), drawing off the moisture in meats such as cod fish and chipped beef; or salt was added to a brine, as in corned beef.   Removing the moisture retarded the spoilage so foods could be transported to commercial markets or carried on long sea voyages and military campaigns.

The block of salt was kept in the kitchen larder, under lock and key.  The affluent in the society would have servants place a portion of the salt, ground into a powder, on the dining table.  The “master” salt, larger than the individual salt cellars, was at the command of the host and positioned near the head of the table.  Individual salt cellars were distributed around the table for the guest.  The higher ranking guests were seated closer to the head of the table.  Lower status guest or “illegitimate” relations we seated further from the head of the table.  If you were of lower status you were said to be “below the salt,” referring to your relative physical position and societal ranking.

Salt cellars, more recently known as salt dips, became more and more ornamental and an important indicator of status on the finest tables.