open today: 9am-5pm
open today : 9am-5pm
A new object has appeared in the collection. It is a salt cellar in the form of a silver hen with movable wings. It comes from Wroclaw and is dated 1720. This magnificent work of goldsmithing presents the figure of a standing rooster with a raised tail of feathers and folded wings. When the head is removed, the inner second closure of the container with perforated holes for pouring is revealed.
Wanting to use the container and spill salt or other spices from inside, one has to tilt the container. Then a surprise occurs: the figure of the rooster comes to life, as its hinged wings spread wide. This clever solution, surprising viewers, includes the object in the group of humorous representative dishes, which were a phenomenon known in the court table culture in the 16th and 17th centuries. Particularly in German goldsmithing, such surprising, sometimes automatically constructed, game dishes and devices were popular.
The salt shaker was finely crafted from silver, partly gilded, using casting, trimming, engraving and chiseling techniques.
Elaborated: Klementyna Ochniak-Dudek
The salt shaker was finely crafted from silver, partly gilded, using casting, trimming, engraving and chiseling techniques.
Elaborated: Klementyna Ochniak-Dudek
