The Great Salt Cellar

The Great Salt Cellar by Benvenuto Cellini is a perfect example of Renaissance Art for many reasons. The Great Salt Cellar mainly known as the Cellini Salt Cellar was completed in 1543 for Francis I of France. Benvenuto Cellini lived from November 1500- February 1571. He was an excellent sculptor, goldsmith, and solider. He was an important artist in of Mannerism. This type of art became more known in the late years of the High Renaissance. Mannerism helps show qualities in art when they are unnaturally elegant. Benvenuto Cellini was the second child of his parents born in Florence. As the son of a musician he was pushed to be a musician. When he was older his father let him become a goldsmith. He was later than banished from Florence for a
Many of his works have now perished but he had several other famous pieces. The Perseus with the head of Medusa is one of the pieces he’s most remembered for. One of the pieces still standing today is a medallion depicting Clement VII that shows peace between the Christian princesses. There are many qualities to why the Cellini Salt Cellar is a perfect example of Renaissance Art. Renaissance artists primary goal was the imitation of nature. This peace that Cellini created was the perfect example of imitation of nature. The male figure holds the salt and represents the sea. He is sitting down beside a ship. The female is next to the temple holding the pepper. She represents the earth. The male and female would later be recognized as Neptune and Tellus. The other objects depict the wind and anything else that were known in the renaissance time period. In the art piece the entwined legs show the “lengthier branches of the sea which run up into the continents.” The new art standards during the renaissance time made human beings the focus of attention. Humans should be the “center and measure of all things” (350). In this sculpture the human beings are the main focus. This piece is so abstract it shows the mannerist style of