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Gods and Goods: Shell, Spirit, Souvenir

By Rachel Elizabeth Jones•July 2025

About this Collection

Box

Box

Conch Shell Trumpet

Conch Shell Trumpet

late 19th century

Turret Shell

Turret Shell

Liturgical Spoon

Liturgical Spoon

early 16th century

Engraved Conch Shell

Engraved Conch Shell

Mississippian • 1200–1500 C.E.

Seal Amulet in the Shape of a Cowry Shell

Seal Amulet in the Shape of a Cowry Shell

ca. 1390–1352 B.C.

Schelpen

Schelpen

Yûshin, Ayaoka • fourth quarter 19th century

Unidentified mythological subject

Unidentified mythological subject

Shell Fragment

Shell Fragment

Ceramic Whistle in the Form of a Shell

Ceramic Whistle in the Form of a Shell

5th–15th century

Gifts of the Ebb Tide (The Shell Book) (Shiohi no tsuto) 潮干のつと(都登)

Gifts of the Ebb Tide (The Shell Book) (Shiohi no tsuto) 潮干のつと(都登)

Kitagawa Utamaro 喜多川歌麿 • probably 1789

Mask

Mask

13th–14th century

Top-Shell and Various Shells

Top-Shell and Various Shells

Totoya Hokkei • 19th century

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

niet van toepassing • first quarter 17th century

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

niet van toepassing • first quarter 17th century

Shell Game (Kaiawase) Set

Shell Game (Kaiawase) Set

Conch Shell Trumpet Effigy

Conch Shell Trumpet Effigy

Colima • -300

Stoomschip op zee met schelpen op het strand

Stoomschip op zee met schelpen op het strand

Gestel, Leo • 1891

Pearl Oyster Shell with Perseus and Andromeda

Pearl Oyster Shell with Perseus and Andromeda

Bellekin, Cornelis • third quarter 17th century

Shell Fragment

Shell Fragment

Spouted bowl or oil lamp

Spouted bowl or oil lamp

ca. 2112–2004 BCE

Shell Flower Arrangement

Shell Flower Arrangement

last half of 19th century

Shell with traces of blue paint

Shell with traces of blue paint

7th–10th century

Snuffbox

Snuffbox

Inlay

Inlay

ca. 2600–2350 BCE

Ceremonial basket adorned with cowrie shells

Ceremonial basket adorned with cowrie shells

Unidentified • 2010s

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

niet van toepassing • first quarter 17th century

Covered container

Covered container

18th–19th century

Schelpen en vissen

Schelpen en vissen

Galle, Philips • 1587

Shell

Shell

Fragment of a shell with a sculpted female head

Fragment of a shell with a sculpted female head

ca. 7th century BCE

Design for a Plate with Thetis on a Shell in a Medallion Bordered by Sea Monsters

Design for a Plate with Thetis on a Shell in a Medallion Bordered by Sea Monsters

Adriaen Collaert • ca. 1600

Snail Shell

Snail Shell

Shell Inscribed with the Cartouche of Senwosret I

Shell Inscribed with the Cartouche of Senwosret I

ca. 1981–1550 B.C.

Shell engraved with winged female deity, sphinxes, and lotus plants

Shell engraved with winged female deity, sphinxes, and lotus plants

Carved Conch with Lakshmi-Narayana

Carved Conch with Lakshmi-Narayana

11th–12th century

Shell, possibly a Bursa rubeta, from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

Shell, possibly a Bursa rubeta, from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

niet van toepassing • first quarter 17th century

Oesterschelp, beschilderd met een bloemtak

Oesterschelp, beschilderd met een bloemtak

Manufacture Oud-Loosdrecht • fourth quarter 18th century

Nautilusschelp van parelmoer gesneden met bloemenranken

Nautilusschelp van parelmoer gesneden met bloemenranken

Bellekin, Cornelis • third quarter 17th century

Shell

Shell

ca. 6th–8th century CE

Conch Shell

Conch Shell

2nd century BCE–4th century CE

Carved Conch

Carved Conch

11th century or earlier

Shell with Inlaid Feline

Shell with Inlaid Feline

100 BCE–700 CE

Casket

Casket

Unknown maker for R. & S. Garrard & Co. • 1875 or 1876

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

niet van toepassing • first quarter 17th century

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

Nautilus pompilius shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw

niet van toepassing • first quarter 17th century

Nautilus Cup

Nautilus Cup

Oesterschelp met zeefiguren en een rots met planten

Oesterschelp met zeefiguren en een rots met planten

Bellekin, Cornelis • fourth quarter 17th century

Nautilusbeker

Nautilusbeker

anonymous • second quarter 17th century

Shell fragment

Shell fragment

ca. 9th–8th century BCE

Box of Cowrie Shells

Box of Cowrie Shells

Ritual conch shell

Ritual conch shell

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