3 reviews
Sarah Sue Goldsmith
If ever there was a coffee-table book worth its steep price, this is it.
The oversized pages and larger-than-life color photographs of seashells in this gorgeous volume demonstrate the incredible variety of shells from all over the world.
Rare photographs--some never before published--join photos of collectors' favorites to create a showcase of more than 300 pictures. The book is a tour of nature's personal gallery of art.
Text follows the history of people's interest in collecting shells, dating from the 17th century, but goes much farther back in time to show how shells were used by Native Americans in their religious ceremonies, festivals and during times of war. The Anasazi used Pacific conches as trumpets, while the Minoans of Crete used the triton for this purpose in 3,500 B.C. Shells have been used in jewelry making and crafts since ancient times.
Text discusses classification, collecting practices and conservation of shells. One of the unique features of the book is the awesome photos, clear and close up, of the graceful animals that create and inhabit the shells.
The depth of color in the images and the artistic composition, both in the photographs and of the overall book, create an exceptionally fine volume that shell collectors will long to have and those who appreciate art will enjoy.
This is a spectacular coffee table book for anyone who' s the least bit interested in shells. It is enormous and packed with breathtaking photos in rich color on glossy stock. The text is as fascinating as the pictures.
The book features a wide variety of shells, many I have never seen before. It has full-page close-ups of individual shells and several shell collages. It also shows the shells as living creatures in their natural habitat.
Another section has many examples of shells in art including jewelry and postage stamps. There is a detailed caption for each photo. Many of these describe the life of the creature as well as the characteristics of the shell.
If you can tear yourself away from the pictures, the text is equally impressive. It covers evolution, the animals inside, shell structure and classification. It also includes chapters on shell collecting and shells in human culture.
Hill, a marine biologist and authority on shells, has teamed with nature photographer Pete Carmichael to produce this exquisitely lovely survey of the world's shells, combining hundreds of spectacular color photographs, many taken underwater, with a richly informative text. Beginning with mollusks' evolution from flat worms more than 600 million years ago, they explore the genetics of shell coloration and patterning, shell architecture, the biology and reproduction of mollusks. Special sections are devoted to a history of shell collecting; freshwater mussels of U.S. rivers and their close association with fish; shell money ranging from the Solomon Islands to Native American wampum; and pearls. Along with astonishing photos of exotic specimens, there are many examples of shells used in art, ritual and everyday life, for example, Victorian thimble-holders made from cut nautilus, an Ethiopian dance belt, the sacred chank shell of India, blown as a trumpet to drive away evil spirits, or 19th-century sailor's valentines, octagonal, glass-covered shell mosaics bought in foreign ports by American sailors and whalers for sweethearts back home. this book will delight shell collectors and prove to be a revelation for the general reader.
As most anyone who has ever seen one will agree, seashells are natural art in and of themselves. But they also have been used by humans as raw materials for art. This large, beautiful book contains 300 color photographs of shells and shell art and a lively text designed for everyday readers. Unlike most books of this type, "Shells" also contains underwater photography of the creatures who "manufacture" and live in the shells. This is one of the most beautiful gift books on the market.