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Cowrie or cowry (pl. cowries) is the common name for a group of small to large sea snails in the family Cypraeidae. The term porcelain derives from the old Italian term for the cowrie shell (porcellana) due to their similar appearance. [1] Cowrie shells have held cultural, economic, and ornamental significance in various cultures.
Shell money usually consisted of whole or partial sea shells, often worked into beads or otherwise shaped. The use of shells in trade began as direct commodity exchange, the shells having use-value as body ornamentation. The distinction between beads as commodities and beads as money has been the subject of debate among economic anthropologists ...
Monetaria moneta, common name the money cowrie, is a species of small sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Cypraeidae, the cowries. [1]This species is called "money cowrie" because the shells were historically widely used in many Pacific and Indian Ocean countries as shell money before coinage was in common usage.
Before the Spring and Autumn period, during the Shang dynasty, cowrie shells had been used as an early type of money. In the Zhou period, their use became more stylised with replica shells made of porcelain, jade or metal coming into use. Some sources suggest that early round coins were a highly stylised representation of the cowrie shells. [1] [2]
Cotton cloth, cowrie shell, raffia fiber, wood, and glass beads are commonly used materials in the creation of various headdresses. The mpaan is one example of a Kuba headdress, exclusively worn by female titleholders.
A cowrie shell, a quartz blade, and six shell beads were found next to the adult's remains. The cowrie shell is of particular interest to archaeologists since cowrie is only naturally found in coastal areas. This indicates that the shell may have been brought to the landlocked Kabusanze site in a kind of long-distance trade. [4]
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