Pair of American Silver Salt Cellars

Object Details

Object Essay

Individual salt dishes became popular in America during the first decade of the 18th century, the earliest examples of the form being shaped like inverted, shallow-welled cups with flaring sides. This form replaced the large and ostentatious standing salt, which occupied a place of prominence on the Renaissance table. These smaller salt dishes were intended to be used in multiples, either next to each person’s plate, or symmetrically arranged on the dining table. By mid-century they were a fairly standard product of early American silversmiths, but only a few survive.^{1_{For a general discussion of the development of the form, see Fales 1970, 65–69.}}

The few pieces of silver known to have been made by Thomas Shields are all distinguished by their bold, sculptural shapes.^{2_{For other examples of Shield’s work, see Buhler and Hood, 2: 204–6, and Silver Supplement, 81–82.}} The shallow, bulbous bowls of these salt dishes have a simple applied molding, which forms an everted rim. The design is very similar to examples made twenty or thirty years earlier, except that the cast legs incorporate rococo motifs—strongly knuckled paw feet and stylized shell knees with alternating convex and concave lobes.

Salt is silver’s greatest enemy because it creates a black corrosion stain that cannot be removed by polishing; long exposure results in pitting of the silver surface. For this reason, salt dishes were generally fitted with protective glass liners. Over the years, most of these liners were broken or lost and rarely replaced; many salt dishes show pitting on the interior. The interiors of these salt dishes have been restored.      

Thomas Shields served his apprenticeship under John Bayley of Philadelphia and opened a shop on Front Street in 1765. He advertised his business between 1769 and 1776 and is listed in Philadelphia directories from 1785 through 1794.^{3_{Prime 1929, 89; Brix, 93.}}

Jennifer F. Goldsborough and Barbara McLean Ward

Excerpted from Clement E. Conger, et al. Treasures of State: Fine and Decorative Arts in the Diplomatic Reception Rooms of the U.S. Department of State. New York: H.N. Abrams, 1991.