Card of the Day: Queen Elizabeth I's Salt Cellar

One of the more obscure and little-known objects of the Coronation Regalia is pictured in the fiftieth and final card of the Churchman Cigarette Company’s 1935 Silver Jubilee Series. Here, we see “Queen Elizabeth’s Salt,” which is also known as “The Great Salt” and is believed to have been a favorite of Queen Elizabeth I. This is actually one of nearly a dozen such “salts” which are housed along with the Crown Jewels. However, this one, due to its unique shape, is thought to be the most magnificent.


The oldest salt cellar of the eleven in the Jewel Tower at the Tower of Londo, “The Great Salt” certainly dates from the reign of Elizabeth I. It is thought to be a model of the White Tower. It has been used at the coronation banquets of most monarchs from the time of King Charles II.

Now, that’s it for our “Card of the Day” feature. For awhile, anyway. I’ve got my eyes open for more monarchy-related cigarette cards, but, to be honest, I already own and have shared with you most of the sets that were produced. Can you believe that we’ve already looked at 120 of them? Still, if I find more, I’ll snatch them up.

In the meantime, I’ve got some new nifty things in queue waiting to take the place of the cards. So, tomorrow, we begin our “Obscure Book of the Day” feature. This feature will take you through my collection of odd Royalty-related ephemera from actual historical Coronation and Jubilee Celebration Programs to vintage children’s books about various monarchs from the past, to, even, strange magazines about the love lives of Britain’s Royal Family. There’s a lot of this stuff on my shelves and it’s all very interesting. So, get ready for a few weeks of fun ahead.