Salt Cellar with Episodes from the Life of Hercules

Private patronage of art increased during the sixteenth century, significantly expanding the range of possible subject matter. The new themes often derived from classical models and displayed a naturalism that reflected the growing influence of humanism. Though no longer unequivocally Christian in content, these objects nevertheless continued to address moral issues and to concern themselves with the nature of the soul. For example, the salt cellars, which illustrate the labors of Hercules, are generally a metaphor for the triumph of virtue. With the growth of a mercantile economy and the consequent increase in lay patronage, figures of vanity and death also became popular subjects, as is evidenced by objects in this case.