Residents in Aotearoa: Shells +

Wednesday 28 February 2018

Shells +

I've read that shells were once used in some cultures as money. Cowry shells seemed to be the most popular type.

We haven't found any of them here yet, but I have a small selection of others that I have found and value. I don't think anyone will give me anything for them though. I used shellac to bring out their colors. Take a look.

I think this is a piece from an Encrusting Tube Worm colony.

Yeah, I know. Not a shell at all. But I found it on the beach and I like it's shape. I don't know what sort of creature left this behind. I've named it 'Bulldog' because it sort of looks like one. I'm not crazy. You see it too, don't you?

I love limpets.

This is a Cook's Turban shell. An edible sea snail. This is a small one. I have one that almost as big as my fist

I didn't dye this shell. It's the only one I've found that is so yellow.

This is a turret shell. Found only in NZ

I like how this shell has aged.

Shells as money? I don't know about you, but these limpets are about as beautiful an item as I can think of. I can easily imagine another time when I might have traded vegetables or venison for them.
Who needs cowries? These nest inside each other and make a very pleasing jingle-jangle in your pocket, almost like coins do. -djf

7 comments:

Dianne1 March 2018 at 17:55
Gotta hand it to you Doug, that is one pretty display of your shells! The yellow scallop (sea fan?) is so unusual and I love the star shapes on the pink sea fans! I picked up a lot turret shells on ONeils Beach just a mere year ago. WOW - a year already and only one more till I get the chance again!
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Doug Foster1 March 2018 at 18:05
Yes, and if you do go down to Wellington, there is a beach right in town...
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Anonymous3 March 2018 at 06:47
I loved the variety in the shells. The 2nd individual shell in your pictures looks just like a human spinal vertebrae to me. Maybe that means something psychologically speaking but I do not know what it would mean. That is what I thought of when I saw it. I cherish my shells that you brought to us. I enjoy the shells' beauty in our sunroom and think of all of you. McKenzie
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Kathie Luther7 March 2018 at 15:15
Fascinating! Beachcombing and rockhounding are so much fun!
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My deer blind, a place outside of time and space.

This is a picture of my deer hunting blind. I built in in 1975 and used it until about 2010. I'm publishing this picture and text on November 15 of 2022, the opening day of Michigan's rifle deer hunting season, to remember all the years I spent sitting there and occasionally harvesting a deer. I think that the meat I provided for my family was only a small portion of the benefit I received from hunting in this manner. Of greater value to me was the time I spent alone, watching the forest and its many components interact. I had time to unwind from the stresses of my work, to appreciate our world, and even sometimes to pray. That blind was a refuge to me. It was cozy, and comfortable and I spent much more time filming the activities of not only deer, but bears, racoons, turkeys, squirrels, hawks, and once, even a snowy owl, than I did harvesting deer. May I suggest to all of you that you try to find some time and a place, where you can be alone, and where you can ponder and appreciate your life and your place in the world. It does a body good. -djf