WHILE this work was going forward, I set aside certain hours of the day
for the salt-cellar, and certain others for the Jupiter. There were more
men engaged upon the former than I had at my disposal for the latter, so
the salt-cellar was by this time completely finished. The King had now
returned to Paris; and when I paid him my respects, I took the piece
with me. As I have already related, it was oval in form, standing about
two-thirds of a cubit, wrought of solid gold, and worked entirely with
the chisel. While speaking of the model, I said before how I had
represented Sea and Earth, seated, with their legs interlaced, as we
observe in the case of firths and promontories; this attitude was
therefore metaphorically appropriate. The Sea carried a trident in his
right hand, and in his left I put a ship of delicate workmanship to hold
the salt. Below him were his four sea-horses, fashioned like our horses
from the head to the front hoofs; all the rest of their body, from the
middle backwards, resembled a fish, and the tails of these creatures
were agreeably inter-woven. Above this group the Sea sat throned in an
attitude of pride and dignity; around him were many kinds of fishes and
other creatures of the ocean. The water was represented with its waves,
and enamelled in the appropriate colour. I had portrayed Earth under the
form of a very handsome woman, holding her horn of plenty, entirely nude
like the male figure; in her left hand I placed a little temple of Ionic
architecture, most delicately wrought, which was meant to contain the
pepper. Beneath her were the handsomest living creatures which the earth
produces; and the rocks were partly enamelled, partly left in gold. The
whole piece reposed upon a base of ebony, properly proportioned, but
with a projecting cornice, upon which I introduced four golden figures
in rather more than half-relief. They represented Night, Day, Twilight,
and Dawn. I put, moreover, into the same frieze four other figures,
similar in size, and intended for the four chief winds; these were
executed, and in part enamelled, with the most exquisite refinement. 1
When I exhibited this piece to his Majesty, he uttered a loud outcry of
astonishment, and could not satiate his eyes with gazing at it. Then he
bade me take it back to my house, saying he would tell me at the proper
time what I should have to do with it. So I carried it home, and sent at
once to invite several of my best friends; we dined gaily together,
placing the salt-cellar in the middle of the table, and thus we were the
first to use it. After this, I went on working at my Jupiter in silver,
and also at the great vase I have already described, which was richly
decorated with a variety of ornaments and figures.
Note 1. This salt-cellar is now at Vienna. It is beautifully represented
by two photogravures in Plon’s great book on Cellini.