By Avril Bourquin, Ross Mayhew and many contributors (see Personal Thanks)
December 1999

Elegant Margin Shell
(Marginella elegans (Gmelin, 1791))
(found in SE Asia - Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, etc.)

I would advise that you periodically check back to this report as new information will be added as it comes up!  If you have information or suggestions that you think would benefit this report,  please feel free to contact me. at any time.

Avril Bourqui

Index

1.  Food:

Along the world's miles of coastline, man has always had a readily available food source - high in protein and trace minerals, because of the many kinds of molluscs to be found there. Mussel and oyster beds, clam-flats and other abundant shellfish have always provided an easy source of food.

Today, fisheries in Europe, Japan and the US alone produce over 1 billion pounds of oyster meat each year. Abalone, a great delicacy, can fetch up to three hundred dollars per pound. Could you imagine a world without Clam Chowder? 

*One problem does exist; however. At certain times of the year, (usually the warmer months) many species of marine molluscs become very poisonous due to an algal bloom known as "red tide" The molluscs filter feed on these tiny animal-like plants (called "dinoflagellates" which produce toxins. Eating shellfish during "Red Tide' can cause serious illness and even death to humans. This could be one explanation why in the Jewish and Muslim cultures, shellfish are considered unclean and forbidden.
(Note: Algae are a diverse group of organisms including many which are one-celled and can swim like animals, and all the many kinds of seaweed.)

Tastes in molluscan food vary tremendously from one person to the next and from culture to culture; however, when it comes to a question of survival, most molluscs are edible. Some are considered delicacies such as oysters and escargot, while others such as the clams and mussels of fresh water ponds and streams are less likely to be consumed due to taste - but none-the-less are very edible!  Terrestrial molluscs are also eaten. France alone consumes 5 million pounds of escargot (a large tree-snail, Helix aspersa Moller) every year.

Here are some more examples of molluscs commonly eaten:

• clams (Family Myidae and Veneridae) - particularly honored in the New England States of the USA!! Veneridae includes the Quahogs (Mercenaria sp.) that are also to be found up and down the eastern U.S coastline.
• scallops (Family Pectinidae) : There are many different kinds ("species") of scallops eaten in many parts of the world.(Note: The "scallops" you purchase in the supermarket are in fact the muscle which the animal uses to close the two halves of its shell tightly together - called the "adductor" muscle.)
• oysters (Family Ostreidae): When eaten raw (something I personally can't imagine doing, but many do!), are often thought to be an aphrodisiac.  Oysters can get expensive, which is probably why there is a recipe known as Oysters Rockerfeller!"
• mussels (Family Mytilidae):  (Note: These are especially prone to poison people with "Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning", which is caused by a tiny, one-celled animal called a dinoflagellate which infects mussels and other bivalves from time to time.  During these times, they produce a strong neuro-toxin (i.e., it affects the nervous system) called "demoic acid", which has killed many and made millions of people sick: NEVER eat mussels or any other bivalve when you don't know if the area has a problem with this deadly kind of food poisoning!!!  In a long-term survival situation, you could perhaps eat a very small nibble, then wait a day or two to see if you get ill , before going "whole quahog" (a little in-joke - it is a New England and Atlantic Canadian clam - pronounced "cohog"!) over them.
• whelks (Family Buccinidae)- VERY big in Japan, and the French pickle them for winter eating!
• cockles (Family Cardiidae): (Europe & Malaysia) - as in Mary Molone, who cried "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive-o!" (shellfish are one of the few kinds of food that are kept alive right up to the moment of cooking: this is because they go bad very quickly, once dead!)
  
• conchs (Family Strombidae): produce a large amount of meat, and are especially treasured in the Caribbean region, where the giant Pink (or Queen) Conch (Strombus gigas Linne) is farmed extensively. Strombus gigas in the Bahamas is heavily exploited for food, and along with two species of Cassis (Helmet shells), are often cultivated in Aquaculture farms. 
• squid & octopus: Particularly popular in Japan (where squid are called "Calamari"), but they are catching on in parts of the Western World.  In Newfoundland (Canada), they are used by the ton as bait for several kinds of fish.
  (Note:  These are cephalopods - a totally different Class of molluscs from the gastropods or bivalves.  They are the most developed molluscs, and some are regarded as the most intelligent invertebrates (animals without a backbone) in the world!) For more information on the cephalopods, see An Advanced Introduction to the Molluscs for details on the taxonomy of the Mollusca phylum)
• pen shells (Family Pinnidae: (Japan and the Mediterranean and occasionally in the USA). They reportedly taste similar to scallops.
• top Shells (Family Trochidae: - Caribbean especially, where the West Indian Top Shell (Cittarium pica Linne, 1758). is considered a delicacy by some of the locals.
• abalone (Haliotis spp): a well-known Tasty Morsel in many parts of the world.  Some rare species can sell for up to $300 a pound ($760 per Kilo)!
• periwinkles (Family Littorinidae): These, once again, are much loved by the French, who like their seafood, even when it is very small!
• coquinas (Donax spp)(Caribbean): - Tiny clams, for chowder!
• limpets (Families Patellidae, Fissurellidae, and Acmaeidae:  Example: "Opihi" (Cellana exarata (Reeve)) lives on the rocks in Hawaii.
• Chitons (Class Polyplacophora): several families used for food). Example: Pacific Northwest Native Americans ate the Giant Pacific Chiton (Cryptochiton stellari (Middendorf)), which gets up to 300mm (12") long!
• turban shells  (Family Turbinidae:( Entire Indo-Pacific, but especially Japan, where, most of the time, if it comes from the sea, they will eat it!)
• helmet shells (Family Cassidae: These can grow very large indeed: a 300 - 350mm (12-14") Horned helmet (Cassis cornuta Linne, 1758) could feed a whole family!
• giant clams (Family Tridacnidae: Although they are rare and protected today, just imagine the amount of meat a fat, 1300mm (nearly 4 feet!) Giant Clam (Tridacna gigas (Linne)) could produce!  The Bear Paw clam (Hippopus hippopus Linne) is still popular today in kitchens in the Philippines.
• Busycon carica: is an important ingredient in the Italian dish of "scungilli marinara", and is commonly referred to as the Bulot shell. 

Only a few molluscs are actually poisonous. A wide variety of molluscs end up in cooking pots around the world every day.- Most of the animals that once created and lived in most ornamental shells sold in stores probably ended up that way!

2. Trade Goods:

Shell currency has been around for over 4,000 years and was, in it's heyday, the most widely used currency in the world. Even today, there still exist minor currencies based on certain shells. 

Some examples of shells' uses in trade are:

• Cowrie shells (Cypraea annulus L., and C. moneta L.), collected loose in bags or strung into strands, were the earliest forms of currency used in many countries. The Chinese, so far as we know, were the first people to use cowries as currency. Here, cowries have been found in prehistoric Stone Age sites. Examples of other country's native money-strands are the diwara in New Guinea, rongo in the Melanesian islands and sapisapi in Africa. The image of the cowrie as a type of currency was so strong that the first oval metal coin minted in the Greek colony of Lydia around 670 B.C. was modeled after that shell. By the eighteenth century, approximately 400 million cowries were being traded per year mostly for the purchase of black slaves. By the middle of the nineteenth century, it could take up to 100,000 cowries just to buy a young wife. Inflation, it seems, was the main demise of the cowrie currency.
• Hard clamshells and whelks were the shells used to make the North American Indian wampum. Eastern Indians also used the tusk shell Dentalium pretiosum Sowerby (collected on Vancouver Is.!! (Canada)) Sowerby, as a trade shell. Wampum continued to be used as money through the first half of the eighteenth century when it finally died out due to counterfeiting and mass production.
• Beads and other ornaments made of  "Spiny Oyster" shells (Spondylus princeps (Broderip) and the Panamanian Pearly oyster Pinctada mazatlantica (Hanley) were traded all over the Andean region.
  The Chumash Indians of California also make shell beads from the purple olive (Olivella) shell that they use as money. The name "Chumash" literally translates to "bead money makers". You may want to visit their web site.
• Aztecs paid shell tributes to the Emperor Montezuma.
• Ancient Phoenician coins distributed throughout the Mediterranean world were sculptured in the likeness of the scallop, murex and Triton (Charonia) shells.
• Coins from many countries display a mollusc on one side.  Some examples are:
  • Sacred chank (Turbinella pyrum Linne), on the chertrum coin of Bhutan
  • Imperial Volute (Cymbiola imperialis Linne) on the 1 sentimo Philippine coin
  • Triton's Trumpet (Charonia tritonis Linne), on the 5 vatu Vanuatu coin
  • Spider Conch (Lambis), on the 1 cent Tuvalu coin
  • Rat Cowrie (Cypraea stercoraria Linne), on the 1 cedi Ghana coin
  • Queen Conch (Strombus gigas Linne), on the 1 dollar Bahamas silver dollar
• Stamps from many countries feature various species of molluscs. Today there are over 5,000 stamps depicting seashells, and quite a few people collect them!

3. Medicinal Uses

Shell amulets were once thought to ward off ill health, infertility or bad luck. Shells have also been ground up for use in potions and for various medicinal uses throughout history. Today the shell, its living flesh and by products are being studied and used in many areas of medicine. Some examples:

• The deadly venoms of some Cone Shells (Conidae) are today being used to help victims of strokes and heart disease, and to produce a revolutionary new drug for chronic pain control (Ziconotide - still awaiting FDA approval)
• An extract from the hard clam or "Quahog" (Mercenaria mercenaria L.) is a strong growth inhibitor of cancers in mice. It is called mercenine, after the clam's scientific name.
• Ground and processed oyster shells are used as a calcium supplements both for humans and animals.
• Paolin, a drug made from abalone juice, is an effective inhibitor of penicillin- resistant strains of bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, Salmonella typhus and parathyphoid A & B bacteria.
• Oyster juice has been found to have anti-viral properties, and may be made into a drug eventually.
• The threads that some mussels (Mytilidae) use to attach themselves to rocks, piers, and other hard surfaces are being tested as possible glue in surgery. Note:  These are called "byssal" threads, from the Latin word byssus, which means "fine linen", which is silky, like the fine threads of many molluscs.  Quite often, a Latin or Greek word borrowed by science in this fashion.)
• The cement of the Carrier Shells (Xenophoridae) is being studied for use as a possible cement for bone fractures.Note: The Carrier shells are the camouflage experts of the mollusc world: they attach all kinds of objects - shells, rocks, pieces of coral, sponges, bottle caps. to their shells, so they look like a little pile of trash on the bottom of the sea - a great way to avoid being eaten!
• Powdered mother of pearl is sold in the markets of the Peruvian Andes to promote healing of wounds (unproven). >Note:Mother of pearl is the beautifully iridescent interior of some bivalves, which the mollusc also uses to surround small, irritating objects which get inside its mantle, or outer body - forming a pearl!)
• Traditional medicine in Vietnam has a wide variety of uses for shells: powdered oyster shell is taken to treat acid indigestion, fatigue and to stop hemorrhage. It is also sprinkled over open wounds and boils. Cuttlefish bones are used as a remedy for rickets, a healing agent in the treatment of gastro-intestinal troubles, a local anti-hemorrhagic (i.e., it stops internal bleeding), and as an antiseptic is cases of inflammation of the middle ear. The flat shell of the Abalone, with its iridescent inside, is powdered and taken orally to improve vision, to remove keratoses (cataracts), and to improve such conditions as hemeralopia (where you can see at night well, but hardly at all in the daytime! Powdered pearls from oysters are used as a topical eye medicine (i.e., you put it right on your eyes!!), and it has been scientifically proven to have some anti-inflammatory effects on a painful condition called conjunctivitis, where the surface of the eye becomes red and sore.

4.  Tools:

From prehistoric times, man has used shells for tools. This practice has been born out by archaeological findings in ancient sites and still carries on even today. Some examples of these shell tools are:

• Household dishes, cooking pots and utensils: cutlery, scoops, spatulas, etc. were often made from bivalves and larger gastropods such as the bailer (Melo (a Volute), whelk (Family??), Nautilus and turban (Turbinidae) shells.  (Nautilus:  Note:  This is an example of where the Scientific and "common" names of an organism are the same.  Sometimes, the common name comes first, and the person describing the organism just uses it, or turns it into a Latin word - but sometimes the Scientific name comes first, and the general public uses it just out of convenience!)
• Food pounders were made from the crystalline stomach style (which the animal uses to help digest its food) " giant clam"  (Tridachna gigas L.), in the South Pacific.
• Storage containers  for such things as perfumes, ointments and medicines were made from some of the larger bivalves and univalves such as the Nautilus.
• Oil lamps made from shells are a frequent find throughout the Middle East. There are examples of these made from bear paw shells (Hippopus hippopus Linne) and the spider conch (Lambis spp). They work by holding oil while the wick floats on the surface.
• Fishing gear: fish lures, octopus lures, hooks and sinkers were made from abalone, pearl shell and cowries.
• Tweezers, tongs and claspers were made from bivalves (the two halves making them ideal for this!).
• Farming Tools: Shovels, plow blades and hoes for tilling the soil were made from hard, sharpened shell pieces.
• Building tools: designed to split and smooth many building and thatching materials such as palm fronds and bamboo canes.
• Blades and scrapers for cutting and skinning hides were made from shells such as the ark shell (family Arcidae) >Note:Many of the "scientific" names of molluscs came from the author's idea of what the shell looked like.  Arcidae, for example, came from the idea that their shells look like miniature versions of Noah's Ark!  Many of the early "naturalists" (i.e., people who studied nature) were doctors, and some of the names they gave to interesting shells are quite "suggestive and naughty", to say the least!)
• Adze, knife and axe blades were made from shells with sharpened edges.
• Drills, chisels, scrapers, sanders, etc. were made from various shells such as the Red Helmet shell (Cassis rufa L.) and were used in such trades as woodworking, farming and tool making.
• Weapons such as spearheads and gouges were made from sharpened and shaped pieces of hard shells such as the Queen conch (Strombus gigas L.).
• Bailing buckets made from "bailer" shells (Melo) are still in use by native fisherman in the South Pacific and Australia today - to bail out their boats!

5. Art and Architecture:

Man has long been inspired by the graceful symmetry and beauty of shells. Archaeological diggings at many ancient sites have produced shells and artifacts in the design of shells. Phoenicians, Greeks, and Romans used the shell's shape as part of their building design and decor. Shells and shell motifs have often been incorporated into man's homes and public buildings. Architecture has been profoundly influenced by the symmetry of molluscs. Many great artists were so inspired by the beauty, diversity and design of the shell, that they incorporated them into their masterpieces. 

Here are a few examples of shell artistry, famous artists and architectures:

Artists:

• Botticelli's Birth of Venus has Venus rising from the foam in a scallop shell. In the ancient world of the Mediterranean, this theme of Aphrodite's (Venus's) arising birth from the shell repeats itself in figurines and wall paintings.
• Pierodella Francesca incorporated the scallop shell Pecten jacobaeus L. into his art.
• Benvenuto Cellini's "The Jewel Chalice" . This precious work of art is a golden shell, exquisitely chased and adorned with jewels. Other artists who included shells in their work are: Ensor, Rodin, and Brusselmans.

Sculptors:

• Bernini made the famous Triton (designed after the Charonia or trumpet shell) fountain in Rome.
• Michelangelo, and many other sculptors and artists,  (famous or not!) used shell images and forms in their works - why? Because shells are beautiful!!

Architecture:

• Leonardo da Vinci drafted the first spiral staircase plans (which are still used by architects today!) from studying the simple snail shell with its interior whorls.
• The spiral tops of Grecian Columns were designed after a nautilus shell cut in half.
• During the Renaissance, architects copied shell shapes for design in niches, facades, tombs and pedestals.
• Frank Lloyd Wright designed the Guggenheim Museum around the Japanese Miracle Shell (Thatcheria mirabilis (Angass)).
• The Sydney Opera House was designed to look like a giant Cock's Comb Oyster (Lopha cristagalli (Linne)).  Go to the John Uzton Page for 2 great pictures of this building (the second one is best!)
• The Mayans of Mexico carved bivalves and conch shells into the walls of their public buildings and temples

Crafts:

Today, man's love affair with the shell is still seen in many of his crafts such as: 

Shell cameos: Especially popular in Victorian England.  A few Italian artisans still make beautiful cameos out of the Red Helmet shell (Cassis rufa L.)
• Sailor's valentines: On long voyages, sailors had plenty of time on their hands, so many of them made gifts to give to their girlfriends.   These included the famous Scrimshaw, usually done on Walrus tusks or Whalebone, and lovingly carved shells - the "Sailors' Valentines"!
Carved decorative shells: A specialty of India and the Philippines.  While many are little more than trinkets, the best are truly beautiful little works of art.
• Shell floral arrangements: These are usually of excellent quality, when you can find them - but you could make your own!  Most craft shops have lots of decorative shells, and it is a fun craft to get involved with!
Shell decoupage: This is essentially making pictures by gluing shells onto a background.  It can be used to produce bric-a-brac, or Exquisite works of art - depending on time, skill, and what you want from it!
• Sea shell figurines and toys: Made in Taiwan, the Philippines, India and other places with inexpensive labor and plenty of shells.  Many of them are extremely imaginative!
Jewelry:  Shells have been used to make Jewelry for thousands of years - especially valued for this is the exquisitely iridescent (i.e., containing all colors of the rainbow!) interior of Abalone (Haliotis spp) shells, and the shiny "mother of pearl" interior of oysters and several other bivalves. (Can someone find examples of some of these on the web?)

Decorations:

Man has been using shells to decorate his dwellings and public meeting places since before the dawn of history.  (Note: Take a look around your own house - bet you find a shell or two somewhere!)

• Shell Crafts (see above section) remain a distinctive form of decoration. Many of the art forms of today started in the early eighteenth century.  The chief credit for making shell work so popular and fashionable a pastime goes to England and specifically to Mrs. Delany and the Duchess of Portland (1714-1785).  Untold millions of shells are displayed in homes and are cherished as curios and in treasured private collections worldwide.
• Ancient Greeks collected shells to decorate their gardens and fishponds. At the height of the Rococo era, real shells for decoration became vogue. Shells were especially used to make, little houses and grottos in the gardens and parks of great chateaux and houses in France and England.
• Many Coats of Arms (symbols of a socially prominent family) bear shell images.

 

6. Religion:

Shells have played a central role in religion from prehistoric times on.  Dominating early religious practices, cowry shells (Cypraea) had powerful symbolism (basically sexual, for they were first and foremost a female symbol) and this was renewed in the religions of the great civilizations that followed. The presence of shells in prehistoric burial places indicate that their symbolic power was believed to continue beyond life. 

Shells in some cultures even today are used as amulets, good luck charms, and as symbols for love, fertility and life eternal. 

Some examples of some these religious practices are:

• Africa: Shells fetishes were often used in worship. Ceremonial garbs are many times decorated with shells and were used in some religious ceremonies.
  Note: a "fetish" an object which is treated with reverence and respect because it is either thought to have special powers, or is where a god or spirit lives or is present in some special manner)
• North American Indians also made fetishes of shells. The Canadian Ojibwa tribe maintained a Grand Medicine Society in which the sacred emblem was a shell.
• India: Hindus: The god Vishnu holds his staff crowned with a very rare left-handed Turbinella  ("Chank") shell   The Hindu, when praying, often clasps a sacred chank or other venerated object in his hands, believing that it will help his or her petitions be heard. Priests also use it for holding sacred oils.
  Note:  Hold a shell up, with the siphon (the open end) down.  Most shells will open to the right.  Sometimes, a specimen will coil the other way; so it opens to the left - so we can say shells are "right-handed and left-handed - or, "dextral" and "sinistral".  Most Chank shells are right handed, so the left-handed ones are rare, and venerated.)
• Asia: Buddhists: The Chank or Turbinella also plays a significant role in their ritual music and ceremonies, and figures into Buddhist iconography.
• Spain: The home of the shrine of Santiago(St. James). St. James's badge is the Giant European scallop shell (Pecten jacobaeus Linne).   Pilgrims to this shrine purchased the simple but exquisitely sculptured scallop shells and wore them as a sign of their pilgrimage to the shrine. This scallop also appears in many paintings and statues of this saint throughout Europe.
• Egypt, China and other cultures used the cowry in connection with their burials and other religious ceremonies.
  NOTE: To see photos of New Guineans wearing tribal costumes, click HERE
• Sierra Leone: Cannibals during the nineteenth century used cowry shells in part of their ceremonial rituals.
• Pre-Columbian South and Central America: Archaeological sites have produced shell trumpets that may have played a role in religious ceremonies.  In the Andes region, a Thorny Oyster (Spondylus princeps (Broderip)), and the giant E. Pacific conch (Strombus galeatus Linne) as well as Pinctada atlanticus  (a Winged Oyster) all had important religious significance.  The Aztecs of Mexico also used shells in their religion:  Tlaloc, the rain god, is depicted as emerging from a conch (Strombus spp) shell. They also used conch and horse conch (Pleuroploca) shell trumpets.
• Minoan Crete: Shell trumpets were used in religious ceremonies.
• Christianity: Many churches had or still have baptismal fonts made of Tridacna gigas Linne) (the famous "Giant Clam"!) or are designed in their likeness. They are thought to be a symbol of birth.

7. Music and Communication:

Long before our modern day communication systems, man found that trumpets made from shells produced a sound that carried for many miles. By using as series of trumpet blasts, messengers were able to communicate fairly detailed messages from village to village, tribe to tribe.  Note:  The Seashell Instrument Site is a great place to learn how to make your own shell trumpets and other instruments!!)In many countries shells have also been tied together or had such things as sand or beads sealed inside them so that they became as sort of rattle to accompany song and dance.

Check in here to see how to make a conch horn, to see what they look like and how they sound.

Some ways in which shells were or still are used are:

• as a summons to religiousceremonies as well as often playing a role in the ceremony itself.
• as a daily call to prayers. Shinto priests in Japan still use the Triton Trumpet shell (Charonia tritonis L.) for this today.
• as a summons to call warriors to battleand to ring out triumphs in battle.
• as an announcement to herald the entrance of kings, emperors, heroes, or important persons. (or, in Fiji to this very day, to announce that fish is being sold at the market, or at the pier!)
• as a prelude, or to call people to public gatherings, such as tribal or community meetings, feasts, sporting events, etc.
• as a curfew announcement  - and is still used in Samoa today, as a signal to proclaim the return of a sailing vessel from a voyage or fishing trip.
• as a foghornin the Mediterranean.
• as an accompanimentin songs, chants and dance throughout the Indo Pacific.
• as a ritual - blowing of the Triton trumpet (Charonia tritonis Linne) at sundown is still customary in Hawaii today.

Almost any shell modified by drilling a hole into it can be used to make music. Any large shell, unmodified and filled with water, can be used to make musical gurgling sounds (try it!).  Most of us, at some time or other, have held an empty shell up to our ear to hear the music of the ocean waves (Note: -ooshing" sound is actually a mixture of all the sounds around you, bouncing off the hard sides of the shell: if you could find a completely quiet place to hold a shell to your ear, you would only hear the Sounds of Silence!)

• Horned helmet (Cassis cornuta Linne, 1758) (Note:  Linnaeus, known as the Father of modern taxonomy (the science of how living things are related to each other - see the article on Molluscan Taxonomy), named most of the common molluscs all around the world (he had students and helpers always out looking for new plants and animals!).  So, most beginning shells collections or discussions about well known shells or molluscs will have every second species followed by his name, and the date of his first and largest work, Systemmae Naturale - 1758!)
• Triton's Trumpet (Charonia tritonis Linne), 1758. Note: The Triton Trumpet shell, as its name suggests, makes a Fabulous trumpet, since it grows to over 450mm (20 "), and has a very large aperture (i.e., opening) - so it can produce a very low, very loud sound which if blown by someone with strong lungs, can be heard for miles!)
• Queen conch (Strombus gigas Linne, 1758). Note: This is the common large shell found lining garden plots, paths, and as doorstops (which is why it is sometimes referred to as the "doorstop conch"!) Throughout North America.  In many parts of Florida, however, pollution and over-collecting for commercial purposes have nearly eliminated many local populations, so the species is now protected in the USA, although some are still imported from the West Indies.)
• King helmet (Cassis tuberosa Linne, 1758) - Lives in the Caribbean Sea, and gets up to a foot (300mm) long, and very heavy.
• Giant Frog shell (Bursa bubo Roding, 1798) - Indian and West Pacific Oceans. Giant stromb or conch (Strombus galeatus Linne, 1758) - Central America.

8. Personal Adornment:

It can be said that every culture has used shells, whole or in part, and pearls as personal adornment. Some cultures even wore shells as part of their elaborate costume to signal their distinct tribal identities and to display their role and rank within the tribe. In some parts of India, a Hindu woman's equivalent of a wedding ring is a bracelet made of the sections of the Indian (or Sacred) Chank. 

Some of the other ways shells have been used as adornment are: 

• as shell Jewelry(pendants, earrings, finger rings, nose rings, bracelets, etc.)
• as buttons and fasteners Abalone shells (Haliotis), especially the famous Paua shell (Haliotis iris Martyn) from New Zealand, were once extremely popular for buttons -  until plastic took over!! The freshwater mussels of the Mississippi river system were used extensively to make "pearl" buttons for many years.  According to one source (Pennak) in the year 1912 there were 196 pearl button factories in 20 states along the rivers of this great river system. They sold over 6 million dollars worth of buttons that year. These same mussels are today being used as the "seed" for cultured pearls.
• as decoration or as intrinsic parts of their function, shell or mother of pearl (iridescent shell interior of many species of bivalves) were commonly used on ceremonial or religious garbs.
• as clothing adornment, pearls are frequently sewn on as jewelry, fresh and saltwater pearls are used in many ways as inserts in ceremonial masks.
• Denatlium Purse. These photos show a carved elk antler purse which was used by the people of Hoopa Indians in California to carry their Dentalia shell money. It was made and used by men.

Two examples of man using the byproducts of molluscs for decoration or fanch clothing are:

1. as fine gloves, caps stockings and collars. These were once made from the "golden fleece" or byssus threads of Pen shells (Pinnidae).
   
   
2. as Dyes: Dyes made from molluscs were used to beautify clothing and other items made from cloth. Depending on the species of mollusc used, the final product varied from red to violet to almost black. As early as the fifteenth century BC, the people of Tyre and Sidon had found a way to extract the purple dye from some molluscs. The same royal purple colour worn by kings, emperors and high priests in the past is still used in the robes and alter mantles of some religions today
   Note: The color the ancients called "purple" (Royal or otherwise), was in fact closer to a dark burgundy or maroon, and various shades of blue were also included under the general moniker of Purple.  In the northern Mediterranean, the dye-makers found they could alter the color produced by urinating into the vat! (The priests and nobles who wore the finished product probably never even knew!)).

An example of this is The P'til Tekhelet (i.e., "Biblical Blue"), the Association for the Promotion and Distribution Of Tekhelet in Jerusalem, Israel. This society still uses and makes the Biblical blue to produce the Jewish ritual fringes on their prayer shawls. In the Old Testament, this blue was so rare and highly valued that it could be collected only once every seventy years and was used to dye just one thread at each corner of the prayer shawl.

Even though artificially produced dyes are available at a fraction of the cost, many Mexican and South American natives still prefer the molluscan dyes for their garbs, since they produce more natural - looking and traditional hues.  In Oaxaca, the Mixtec still search the seashore for the pretty Purpura patula pansa Gould, 1853) (the "Wide-mouthed Purpura"), squeeze some of their juices onto yarns, and return the shell to its home, to be used again the following season. These same dyes were used as early as 400 BC

Some molluscs that have been used to dye material are:

• Murex miliaris Gmelin, 1791 (Mediterranean)
  Note: once known as M. purpura Deshayes, 1834.  This is a good example of a "synonym": when someone gives a name to a species (i.e., "describes" it, in scientific lingo, since the process involves publish a description of a single specimen of the species, which becomes known as the "holotype" for that species, or several specimens, which are then called "syntypes" (Syn in Latin means "together" - the specimens are used together, as a group, to represent the species.) which someone else has already described before, the first name has priority when other scientists discover that the two names have been given to the same species.  The second (and all other names a species may accumulate - up to a hundred or more, for very variable beasties!) then becomes a "synonym" of the first name, which is the only one that is valid.  This can cause confusion at times, especially when a name has been used for a long time before an older name is dug up, and everyone has to change his or her labels! - But it is the only fair way of making sure the original describer (known as an "author", since every new name for anything must be published in an article in a scientific journal, or in a book) gets the credit he or she deserves.)
• The Purple Dye Murex (Murex brandaris L.- (Mediterranean)
  Note: Linneus described (i.e., named) so many common species that his name as an author (see above Note) is often simply abbreviated to "L.", for convenience!)  - Uncounted millions of these Murexes were killed to make purple dye for the Roman Empire!
• Certain Rock Shells Thais haemastoma (L.), T. clavigella (Kuster, 1856), and T. leucostoma (Gmelin, 1791)) (Europe)
• Hexaplex trunclulus (Linne, 1758): This shell was equally important with brandaris in the ancient purple trade and it was most extensively used by the Phoenicians, but also by the Romans and other Mediterranean cultures. ( For more information on this subject, a good; but be warned, rather technical site for more information is:  Applications of Synchrotron Techniques in Art and Archaeology Workshop )
• The Atlantic Dog whelk (or "Dog winkle"): (New England and Eastern Canada, and also Europe).(Nucella lapillus (L.)) In Nova Scotia, someone once tried to set up a factory to produce purple dye from this species, but it flopped because it proved too labor-intensive to gather and handle the millions of individual specimens involved: by the time they paid all the workers, there was no money left for profits!
• The Purple-mouthed Purpura:(Purpura patula pansa (Gould, 1853)).(Central America) (see above article on dyes).
• The Barnacle Rock Shell: Concholepas concholepas (Brugiere, 1792)) (Peru and Chile).

Note All of the above species belong to the Family Muricidae - the Murex Family!, and all produce a bluish-reddish-purplish type of dye. 

9. Industry:

Today, molluscan research is taking place in the areas of: parasitology biochemistry, mathematics, archaeology, paleobiography, palaeontology, taxonomy, ecology and zoology.  Also, many of the categories of use discussed above have significant economic impact, mostly in many small businesses, so the total economic activity involved in man's varied uses of molluscs is quite major!!! 

Some other industries also making use of molluscs are:

• Aquaculture(farming of abalone, oysters, scallops, mussels, etc.)
• Horiciculture (farming escargot) - Big Business in Europe!
• Import & export companies of shellfish as food.
• Sea shell and shell artifact importers, exporters and distributors: shell collectors, tourist shells, shell crafts
• Jewelry designers and manufacturers
• "Pearl button industry: although not as important as it was in the early 1900s, it still remains as an industry in many countries today.
• Construction industry:Shells along with gravel are used for building roads in some areas, and lime from shells is a vital component in the production of concrete and plaster.
• Fertilizer manufacturing(lime is an important nutrient for plants and therefore has been used as a vital component of plant fertilizer)
• Manufacturing caulking and glue ; (Some cultures still use a ground up shell mixture as glue and as a caulking compound for such things as boats).
• Pearl industry- both salt and fresh water pearls.
  Note: "Worldwide, pearls are a $20 Billion dollar (in USA dollars) industry! Pearls are used all over the world as an International Currency.
• Paint production -Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest ground shells into a powder, mixed it with salmon eggs and then used it as the white paint on totem poles.

10. Offshoots:

Shells have had an indirect influence in advancing other industrial and world concerns in areas such as:

• Exploration voyages both on land and sea.
• SCUBA diving and snorkeling ventures and companies: partly spurred on by collectors looking for deep-water shells.
• Development of marine reserves and parks - to protect endangered (by pollution and destructive fishing techniques mostly -NOT shell collectors!!!) species of molluscs and other sea life, such as corals.
• The Shell Oil Company of today, started out as a shell import company. When the value of the shell buttons in industry fell, they were forced to look for a better-paying commodity, and got lucky with oil!

• Shells are ground up and added to chicken feed (for stronger eggs
• For decades the large Strombus gigas was used as ballast in ships returning from the Caribbean.
• The Queen or Doorstop Conch (Strombus gigas L.) was once consumed in such large quantities that their empty shells were used in the building of harbors and breakwaters!
• Work is being conducted on the remarkable adhesive produced by carrier shells  (Xenophoridae) as a potential glue for undersea construction & repair work.
• South American Indians use shell lime to extract the narcotic (Cocaine!) from cocoa leaves.
• Some countries used powdered shells instead of calcium carbonate to make the liquid clay used in the production of ceramics. This adds a different effect to the finished product.

12. Shell Collecting:

It is man's inborn nature to collect, whether it be rocks, shells, coins, stamps, cars, or baseball cards. We all collect. We always have. It's part of being human. We find procuring, sorting, identifying, cataloguing, and trading of items we find dear to us, and quite satisfying.

There are almost as many reasons for collecting shells as there people collecting them: many people simply admire the endless beauty and variety of shells (a large collection can have up to 30,000 species!), while others collect more for scientific reasons - there is still a great deal to learn from and about the shells of the world, and well-documented collections are of great value to science, even today!

The collection and study of shells, whether by amateurs or professionals, is called Conchology.

Note:There are many good guides to shell collecting at on the WWW...If you have other questions, you can contact me and I will get you in touch with a reputable shell person in your country if possible. You may also want to visit my Links Page on Shell Collecting.

Bibliography

Kingdom of the Seashell: R. Tucker Abbot: Dupont Chair of Malacology, Delaware Museum of Natural History 
Crown Publishers Second printing, 1975

Shells & Shell Collecting, S. Peter Dance, University of California 
Press, Berkely & Los Angeles, 1966

Spirals from the Sea: An Anthropological Look at Shells
Jane Feared Safer and Franchises McLaughlin Gill 
published by Clarkson N Potter, Inc/Publishers, 1982

The Romance of Shells in Nature and Art:
Louise Allderdice Travers 
Avenel Books a div. of Crown Publishers The Shell: Gift of the Sea
Hugh and Margaret Stix & R. Tucker Abbott 
Abradale Pree/Harry N. Abrams Inc., New York, 1984 

A Conchological Iconography: 
edited by Conch Books 
Kurt Kreipl & Guido T. Poppe, 1999  Encarta 98 Encyclopedia: 
CD - Microsoft, 1998.

Shells: An Illustrated Guide to a Timeless and Fascinating World: 
Mary Saul 
Doubleday & Company, Inc. New York 1974 

Shell Shock: Conchological Curiosities
Patrick Mauries 
Thames & Hudson Ltd., London 1994 

Links to WWW Sites Used

The following web sites were used "by permission" of the owner or by were covered by other disclaimers:  Many of these links may change or even go completely off the web. I will not attempt to keep them updated. To get up=to-date web pages on these and many, many more great web sites, Please visit my Internet Resources Pages. ( /links_index.html )

If a web page ceases to exist, I will leave the original URL in scrip; however it will not be linked!

• The Conchologist's Information Network
• "Molluscs and Man" by Amy Edwards
  (http://museum.nhm.uga.edu/GSC/newsletr/JUN97.html)
• Painkillers from the Sea by Graeme O'Neil permission by Dr. Bruce Livett
• "Of Molluscs and Men": Marine Biological Laboratory Pamela Clapp Hinkle
  ( http://www.mbl.edu/LABNOTES/7.3/cone.html )
• Western Fisheries Magazine Archive Rae Burrows
• Escargot & Helciculture Philippe Thomas
• The Harmful Algae Page Judy Kleindinst@whoi.edu
• Solutions To Avoid Red Tide Jeremy Warmouth
• Kanehoa Company:  R. Mathias Hantzen
  ( http://www.weshop.com/kanehoa/index.html
• P'til Tekhelet - Great educational site!!
• Ancient Harvests University of Delaware Ginger Pinholster

• For more Molluscan links, go to the Links Index Page!

Personal Thanks:

I would like to personally thank the following members of the CONCH-L List for their invaluable input of information and help in compiling this paper: 

• Paul Monfils, USA  Thanks for your input as well as the wonderful shell photographs you donated to this article... 
• Lynn Scheu, USA, for her most generous gift of time and skill in proofreading. 
• Ross Mayhew, Canada, was a great help in the development of this paper. His ideas, support, and encouragement were most useful! 
• Dan & Hiromi Yoshimoto, USA: some splendid input, including a whole raft of spelling mistakes!! 
• Bruce Livett, Australia (Cone toxins Researcher) 
• Barbara Haviland, USA (she and her husband Frank are experts in the Scallop family (Pectinidae)) 
• Amy Edwards, USA 
• Kate Clark, Ecuador 
• Moshe Erlendor, Israel / Iceland 
• Vicky Wall, USA 
• Cadee M.C., Netherlands 
• Lucia Gutierrez, Hawaii, USA 
• Patrick Draeger, USA 
• Emilio Lopez Hernandez, Venezuela 
• Michael Reagin, USA