I am still intrigued by Art Weil's question: What three shells would you
take with you if you knew a tornado was coming? What shells, I wondered,
sell the best?
 
In the latest issue of American Conchologist (v. 27, no. 1, March 1999, the
one with the gorgeous cover by Ross Gundersen), there are 31 commercial
advertisements for shell dealers. Nearly all have an illustration of a
single shell, or one that is larger than all of the others. These include
Lambis, Epitonium, Liguus, Thatcheria, Nautilus, and a couple of
Cypraea--all popular choices among collectors. Several Conus and Chlamys
are illustrated along with other shells in 2 ads, so all 3 of the major
molluscan groups are represented. But the most popular shells among shell
dealers are definitely muricids. Their prickly shells are everywhere in the
pages of AmConch, graphic homage to Harold and Emily Vokes.
 
It makes me wonder if there is a Muricid Bubble going on, with prices
spiraling upward as collectors demand more and more of the spiky little
horrors. Were muricids always the most popular shells, or were nice smooth
cones and cowries the winners in former days? And what's this craze for
gastropods anyway? Does anyone prefer the bivalves--other than scallops,
that is?
 
A beginning collector would be well advised to specialize in a group that
has been neglected by others: Lower prices, less competition, a better
selection of shells that dealers wish would move faster off their shelves,
and you end up with a unique collection and people remember your name. (It
will be a long time before I can think of Pleurotomaria without thinking of
James Cheshire, for instance.) Does anyone collect scaphopods, for
instance? Or nuculanids? I know that oyster collectors are few and far
between, even in the scientific community. Hey, oysters need love, too!
 
Andrew K. Rindsberg
Geological Survey of Alabama