Small Square Salt and Pepper Shakers of Rosewood

Squared shakers of rosewood, each face carrying an inset silver disc, turn a humble table accessory into a study of material contrast. The pairing of dark rosewood with bright silver is the combination Spratling favored in his table objects, the same warmth-against-reflection that Morrill links to the influence of Jean Puiforcat (Morrill, p. 224).

The disciplined geometry, four discs on four sides of a cube, is characteristic of the way Spratling reduced ornament to placement and proportion. These small wood-and-silver pieces were part of the broad range of table objects the workshop produced alongside its jewelry and hollowware.

Matched pairs of this kind survive only occasionally.