The Roman saltpans at Xwejni, Gozo

Abstract

Salt is definitely among the most highly prized mineral resources on earth. The importance of salt can be demonstrated by the fact that it has been used for money. The modern English word salary is derived from the Latin salarium which originally referred to the direct payment of salt as wages to Roman soldiers. Frequently associated with bread, the most basic of foods, salt, where known in the ancient world, very often took a religious significance. Thus in the Bible, and more precisely the Book of Numbers (18, 19) and the second book of the Chronicles (13, 5) speak of "a covenant of salt forever" that is a covenant of eternal friendship. The eating of the salt of another is a symbol of friendship in many languages. In Hebrew, the Leviticus (2, 13) decrees: "with all your offerings you shall offer salt". Similarly, in Greek the phrase "trespass not against the salt", in Arabic "there is salt between us", and in Persian "untrue to salt" all express, in one degree or another, the intimate connection of salt with the idea of a covenant or binding relationship between God and humans or one person and another. In English the term "salt of the earth" describes a person held in high esteem. [excerpt]