Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt

between 1664 and 1665

Mughal, Indian

On View

Islamic, Level 1, North Wing

Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt

Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt: 1 of Collection Gallery

Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt: 2 of Collection Gallery

Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt: 3 of Collection Gallery

Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt: 4 of Collection Gallery

Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt: 5 of Collection Gallery

Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt: 6 of Collection Gallery

Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt: 7 of Collection Gallery

Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt: 8 of Collection Gallery

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About the Artwork

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Markings

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Provenance

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Exhibition History

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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Credit Line for Reproduction

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About the Artwork

The excerpts from Persian poems inscribed on this lidded container from Mughal India reveal the purpose of the object: to hold salt. Its inscriptions also record the name of its owner, a government official named Muhammad Husayn, and its date, 1664 – 65.
Covered in floral imagery, the saltcellar would have been one of many luxury objects displayed and used during meals hosted by Muhammad Husayn. Its naturalistic flowers may have recalled a fragrant garden — a popular setting for dinner parties among the Mughal elite.
One of the inscribed verses — “A host places a saltcellar on the table first” — comes from a couplet by the Iranian poet Sa’ib Tabrizi, who lived in India from 1625 – 32. The authorship of the other lines is no longer known, but Muhammad Husayn and his dining companions must have identified the poets and relished their wordplay.

Title Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt

Artwork Date between 1664 and 1665

Artist ----------

Life Dates ----------

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. Indian

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. Mughal

Medium Copper and tin

Dimensions Overall (including lid): 3 1/2 × 3 3/4 inches (8.9 × 9.5 cm)

Classification Metalwork

Department Islamic Art

Credit City of Detroit Purchase

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 30.432

Markings

Inscriptions Inscribed, in Persian, translation by Shadi Shafiei (26 August 2021) [translation: A saltcellar as tight as an ant’s heart, [And yet] enough salt to bring passion into the world. I sucked its lip and immediately was beside myself, The euphoric wine that gives intoxication has salt [in it]. The host would first bring a saltcellar to the table. Owned by the sinful slave Muhammad Hosein year 1075 (1664/1665 A.D).] [transliteration by Shadi Shafiei: Namakdāni bi tangi chun dil-i mur | Namak chandān ki dar giti fitad shur || Labash makidam o dar dam zi khishtan raftam | Sharāb-i shur ki masti dahad namak dārad || Mizbān avval namakdān bar sar-i khān āvarad || Sahibuhou al ‘Abd al-Muzannib Muhammad Hosein sana-i 1075]

Provenance

(Arthur Upham Pope);
1930-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

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Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

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Published References

Komaroff, Linda, ed. Dining with the Sultan: The Fine Art of Feasting. Exh. cat., Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Los Angeles and New York, 2023, pp. 88-89; pp. 203-204, cat. no. 50b (ill.).

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

Mughal, Indian, Saltcellar inscribed with Poem about Salt, between 1664 and 1665, copper and tin. Detroit Institute of Arts, City of Detroit Purchase, 30.432.