Salt Cellars & Spoons

Please Pass the Salt Cellar 
and Spoon

                          Black-glaze salt cellar. Terracotta, 5th century BC, Athens.

Benvenuto Cellini's Salt Cellar, made in Paris for Francis I of France, 1540-1543; 

Gold, partly covered in enamel, with an ebony base.

     A salt cellar (also called salt or standing salt) is a vessel, usually small and made of glass or silver, used on the table for holding salt. An individual salt dish or squat open salt cellar placed near a trencher was called a trencher salt. The use of salt cellars continued through the 1940s but has been in decline since, gradually replaced by salt shakers.
The exterior surfaces of modern cellars are frequently decorated with birds, lemons or other designs, and may have the word "salt" or "S" on them in various languages. A salt cellar often has a lid to protect the contents and keep it dry. The lid may be made of the same material as the cellar, or a different one (for example, a porcelain cellar with a wooden lid). Some salt cellars, also known as salt dips, open salts, and salt dishes, are not true cellars at all, but open dishes, without lids. These were used by wealthy families from the Middle Ages until World War II. The bowl, along with a miniature salt spoon, was passed to guests by the head of the household for individual service. It is still possible to find salt cellars today, but they are not used as table decorations. They have lids and are used near the stove so the cook has easy access to salt while preparing meals. These are less likely to be elaborately decorated, and may have a range of designs for ease of use. For example, a salt cellar with a high back containing a hole allows the cellar to be mounted to a wall. Another style is a container shaped like a curved tube. The curvature protects the salt a little, but the cellar is open allowing the cook to reach in and take salt. Salt cellars used to be made of glass, but in recent times can be found in many different media, including porcelain, pewter, silver and wood. Sometime after 1950, salt cellars became a coveted collectible.
     In ancient times salt was a precious commodity. In Tibet, according to Marco Polo, cakes of salt displayed a likeness of the ruler and were used as money.  In Ancient Greece, slaves were traded for salt; and around 2000BCE the Chinese emperor levied a salt tax. 

An English glass salt cellar, circa 1720

     During the Middle Ages, when salt was a valuable commodity, salt would be kept on the table in elaborate metal or glass dishes as a status symbol. Being granted the favor of guest was often measured simply by judging the distance at which the person sat from the master's large salt cellar placed near the middle of a long table: the phrases above the salt and below the salt alluded to the former custom of seating persons of higher rank above and those of lower rank below that container. In the more recent past, salt was still very costly and precious. For example, before refrigeration salt was the main ingredient for preserving food.
     In the early 20th century, moisture absorbing agents (such as magnesium carbonate) were added to salt and it was no longer sold in blocks, but was finely ground. Salt cellars were replaced with salt shakers somewhere around 1950.

 Salt Spoons

     A salt spoon is a miniature utensil used with an open salt cellar for individual service. It is an historical and nostalgic item from a time before table salt was free-flowing, as it is today. The spoon itself ranges from 2 to 3 inches (5 to 7.5 cm) long and has a circular bowl measuring approximately 0.5 to 0.75 inches (1.25 to 2 cm). They can be found in a wide range of materials including glass, Sterling silver, plastic, wood, ivory, bone and shell. Sterling Silver Salt Spoons are an elegant addition to any table and a popular collector's item. Salt Spoons, popularized in 1810, were used when individual servings of salt (served in salt cellars) were needed during Victorian dinner parties. These miniature spoons, which usually measured no longer than two to three inches, were traditionally made from sterling silver and had highly ornate patterns.
     Silver Salt Spoons are now a timeless and sought after addition to many collections. Salt spoons, both antique and reproduction, exemplify beauty and detail. Although traditionally cast in sterling silver they can also be found in glass and wood. Salt spoons typically have a small spoon bowl measuring no more than ½ to 3/4 inches and an ornate handle featuring flowers, swirl designs or geometric patterns. The range in patterns varies from very simple to extremely decorative.

Pie Birds

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     A pie bird, pie vent, pie whistle, pie funnel, or pie chimney is a hollow ceramic device, originating in Europe, shaped like a funnel, chimney, or upstretched bird with open beak. Funnel-style steam vents have been placed in the center of fruit and meat pies during cooking since Victorian times; the bird shapes came a little later.  
      Pie funnels were used to keep pie filling from boiling up and leaking through the crust by allowing steam to escape from inside the pie. They also supported the pastry crust in the center of the pie, so that it did not sag in the middle, and are occasionally known as "crust-holders". Older ovens had more problems with uniform heating, and the pie bird prevented boil over in pie cooking.
     The traditional inverted funnels with arches on the bottom for steam to enter were followed by ceramic birds, and from the 1940s they have been produced in a multitude of designs. This trend has been particularly noticeable in recent times, due to their increasing popularity as gifts and collectors' items rather than simply utilitarian kitchen tools.
     The nursery rhyme "Sing a Song of Sixpence" refers to "Four and twenty blackbirds, baked in a pie; when the pie was opened, the birds began to sing" but it is uncertain whether pie vents were designed to look like birds because of this song. The Oxford English Dictionary comments that the word pie itself (in the culinary sense) may be connected with 'pie' as the name of a variety of birds, in particular the magpie.
     Pie birds are somewhat hard to find and highly sought after by collectors today. Despite being three birds short of a complete set, this extremely rare flock shown below -made by the Camark pottery company in the 1940s - still carries an impressive value of $8,000.

Wagner Cast Iron Cookware

Wagner Cast Iron Cookware

  Cast iron cookware was especially popular among homemakers and housekeepers during the first half of the 20th century. One of the most popular brands and the most collectible today is Wagner. On July 21, 1891, Milton and Bernard Wagner organized a partnership, and formed the Wagner Manufacturing Company in Sidney, Ohio. They started with cast iron hollow ware and added nickel-plated ware in 1892.  Wagner purchased the Sidney Hollow Ware Foundry around 1897. They realized the Sidney Hollow Ware line was hurting the Wagner Hollow Ware Sales around 1903 and sold the company back to Philip Smith.
      Look for the oldest Wagner items by name and patent dates. Wagner Manufacturing was the original company, and it used "Wagner Ware" in some markings by 1902. It also had Wagner Hollow Ware and had purchased the Sidney Hollow Ware Foundry in 1897. Many items have patent dates in the mold, and this helps identify Wagner markings. It may have "Sidney, Ohio" on the bottom or just "Sidney O." This indicates that the piece was made by Wagner Ware before 1922.   Many early pieces are labeled as “Wagner" with the name in quotation marks. The company used this early marking prior to 1922, sometimes in combination with the Sidney name. This indicates that the piece is an authentic Wagner.
      Wagner made molded cast iron with a polished exterior and interior, and the best production was from 1920 to 1940. An article in "The Kansan" reports that manufacturers of cast iron during that period polished it in a drum or turned it on a lathe to make cooking surfaces smooth.
      The Randall Company of Cincinnati, Ohio acquired Wagner Manufacturing Company in 1953.
In October of 1957, the Wagner Division of Randall Company purchased the Griswold Cookware Line from McGraw Edison. In 1959, Textron Inc acquired the Randall Company.
In September of 1969, General Housewares Corp. bought Textron Inc., which included all Wagner and Griswold lines. In the spring of 1997, The Wagner Corporation (a group of investors) bought from General Housewares Corp. the Wagner factory.
      In 1999, the Wagner Corporation closed for a break and never reopened its doors. The Wagner Plant reopened its doors last half of 2003. They are starting to produce iron cooking items.
      Cast iron fell out of favor in the 1960s and 1970s, as teflon-coated non-stick cookware was introduced to the public and quickly became the item of choice in many kitchens. Today, a large selection of cookware can be purchased from kitchen suppliers, of which cast iron comprises only a small fraction. However, the durability and reliability of cast iron as a cooking tool has ensured its survival, and cast iron cookware is still recommended by most cooks and chefs as an essential part of any kitchen.