Objekt 3
Mustard or oil jug and salt cellar as well as small leg spoon
Description
For salt, which is indispensable on the dining table, and precious spices such as pepper or mustard, separate vessels have been made since the Middle Ages. Designed as a pair, the salt pots with lids gilded on the inside bear inserts of rock crystal, as the silver would quickly corrode through contact with salt. The jug is also completely gilded on the inside. It is possible that mustard was served in it, which was consumed thinly at the time and was therefore served in jugs. The vessels prominently bear the engraved alliance coat of arms of the Buxtorf and Le Grand families as well as the date 1775. They served as wedding gifts: in that year the professor of theology and rhetoric Johann Rudolf Buxtorf (1747-1831) married the eldest daughter of the Grand Councillor Daniel Legrand named Katharina Legrand (1752-1814). The executing goldsmith Abel Handmann (1715-1788) is one of the leading goldsmiths of Basel in the 18th century, whose works are characterized by great quality and elegance.
Object description
Basel, dated 1775
Goldsmith: Abel Handmann (1715-1788)
Silver, gilded inside, rock crystal, bone
Gift of Dr. Regine Buxtorf, Basel
Inv. 2018.959.