Salt
1848 (designed (shape)), 1865 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object Type
A shell held aloft on the tail of a sea creature, in this case a dolphin, provides a distinctive way to present salt to a guest. This is a rare contribution by Wedgwood & Co. to Felix Summerly's Art Manufactures' scheme to promote public taste by employing well-known painters and sculptors to design articles for everyday use. The firm most closely associated with Summerly, and the most productive, was Minton & Co.
People
John Bell (1811-1895) was born in Hopton, Norfolk. He studied at the Royal Academy Schools from 1829 and exhibited there regularly from 1832. He worked extensively as a sculptor and modeller in a variety of materials, including marble, terracotta and cast iron. During the mid-1840s he was invited by Henry Cole (1808-1882) to provide a design for an inkwell for Summerly's Art Manufactures and this was followed by a number of figures reproduced in Parian, notably by Minton and Copeland. At the same time two models were commissioned for the Manufactures from Wedgwood, one of which is this, the Dolphin Salt.
Time
Elaborately painted and gilded as this is, it is possible that the model offered in 1848 was intended as unpainted or at least as less elaborate. This example was made in 1865, some 14 years after the cessation of the Art Manufactures, by which time Wedgwood were making it independently.
A shell held aloft on the tail of a sea creature, in this case a dolphin, provides a distinctive way to present salt to a guest. This is a rare contribution by Wedgwood & Co. to Felix Summerly's Art Manufactures' scheme to promote public taste by employing well-known painters and sculptors to design articles for everyday use. The firm most closely associated with Summerly, and the most productive, was Minton & Co.
People
John Bell (1811-1895) was born in Hopton, Norfolk. He studied at the Royal Academy Schools from 1829 and exhibited there regularly from 1832. He worked extensively as a sculptor and modeller in a variety of materials, including marble, terracotta and cast iron. During the mid-1840s he was invited by Henry Cole (1808-1882) to provide a design for an inkwell for Summerly's Art Manufactures and this was followed by a number of figures reproduced in Parian, notably by Minton and Copeland. At the same time two models were commissioned for the Manufactures from Wedgwood, one of which is this, the Dolphin Salt.
Time
Elaborately painted and gilded as this is, it is possible that the model offered in 1848 was intended as unpainted or at least as less elaborate. This example was made in 1865, some 14 years after the cessation of the Art Manufactures, by which time Wedgwood were making it independently.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Earthenware, enamelled, painted and gilded |
| Brief description | fish and shell salt dish |
| Dimensions |
|
| Marks and inscriptions | Painted on the base 'First produced January 29-48 Present example April 6-65' |
| Gallery label | British Galleries:
The idea of serving salt in a shell to symbolise the sea began in the early 1700s. Large shells such as this were popular, as well as smaller individual shells for each guest at dinner.(27/03/2003) |
| Credit line | Given by Wedgwood & Sons |
| Object history | Designed by John Bell (born in Hepton, Suffolk, 1811, died in London, 1895) for Felix Summerly's Art Manufactures Manufactured by Wedgwood & Sons, Etruria, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire |
| Summary | Object Type A shell held aloft on the tail of a sea creature, in this case a dolphin, provides a distinctive way to present salt to a guest. This is a rare contribution by Wedgwood & Co. to Felix Summerly's Art Manufactures' scheme to promote public taste by employing well-known painters and sculptors to design articles for everyday use. The firm most closely associated with Summerly, and the most productive, was Minton & Co. People John Bell (1811-1895) was born in Hopton, Norfolk. He studied at the Royal Academy Schools from 1829 and exhibited there regularly from 1832. He worked extensively as a sculptor and modeller in a variety of materials, including marble, terracotta and cast iron. During the mid-1840s he was invited by Henry Cole (1808-1882) to provide a design for an inkwell for Summerly's Art Manufactures and this was followed by a number of figures reproduced in Parian, notably by Minton and Copeland. At the same time two models were commissioned for the Manufactures from Wedgwood, one of which is this, the Dolphin Salt. Time Elaborately painted and gilded as this is, it is possible that the model offered in 1848 was intended as unpainted or at least as less elaborate. This example was made in 1865, some 14 years after the cessation of the Art Manufactures, by which time Wedgwood were making it independently. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 162-1865 |
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| Record created | May 25, 1999 |
| Record URL |
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