I agree, Bob. In fact, some very beautiful art pieces have been made
from pearlized shells inlaid with worked silver. I've seen pearlized
nautilus and large oyster shells decorated in this way. These don't come
cheap. If memory serves me, one was offered at the COA Convention raffle
in Captiva a few years ago and another at the Louisville convention in
1999. Both were in great demand, by specimen collectors, I might add,
though not AS specimens. I think many collectors appreciate shell art as
an outgrowth of the hobby.

Also, the Headley-Whitney Museum near Lexington had (before a tragic
fire destroyed them a few years ago) a remarkable collection of such
bibelots crafted by reknowned artists including (again, if memory
doesn't err) Faberge, using pearlized shells set in or inlaid with
precious metals, precious corals and gemstones. George Headley was a
shell collector for many years before his death; in addition to this
beautiful bibelot collection, he housed his fine shell collection in a
real Victorian shell grotto which was open to the public. I don't know
what has become of the place since the fire.

Lynn Scheu
Louisville, KY


Robert & Betty Lipe wrote:
>
> Home decorators will disagree with you.  Not all people are specimen
> collectors.  We always explain to anyone looking at the pearlized form
> what has been done to the original shell.  They think it's very
> interesting.
>
> Bob
>