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"Sailor's Valentines" were late
19th century decorative keepsakes which were made in
the Caribbean, and which were often purchased by
seamen/sailors to give to their loved ones back
home. They consisted of elaborate arrangements of
seashells glued into attractive symmetrical designs,
which were encased on a wooden hinged box-frame. The
patterns used often featured heart-shaped designs,
or included a sentimental expression of love spelled
out in small seashells
Seashells and architectural
decoration
Small
seashells pieces of
colored and iridescent shell have been used to
create mosaics and inlays, which have been used to
decorate walls, boxes and furniture.
Large numbers of whole
seashells, arranged to form patterns, have been used
to decorate man-made grotto, furniture and mirror
frames.
Seashells and art
Enormous seashells sculpture at
Trivandum, Akkulam, India. Large sculpture of a scallop on
the sandy beach at Aldeburgh, England
The pleasing designs of
seashells have caused them to be featured in art in
various ways, in sculpture, in paintings, and so on.
A very large outdoor sculpture
at Akkulam of a gastropod seashells is a reference
to the sacred chank shell Turbinella pyrum of India.
Maggi Hambling designed a
striking 4 meter high sculpture of a scallop shell
which stands on the beach at Aldeburgh, in Great
Britain. Aphrodite, 1st century BC, 13 cms, 5
inches.
The goddess of love, Venus or
Aphrodite is often traditionally depicted rising
from the sea on a huge seashell.
In the Birth of Venus
(Botticelli), Botticelli depicted the goddess Venus
rising from the ocean on a scallop big shell.
Related article
concerning types of seashells
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