Cypraea moneta was widely used as a trade item by the Europeans.
Conrad mistook a specimen from the James River in Virginia as a
genuine member of the Pliocene fauna rather than a trade bead lost by
a native.

Shells were traded over very long distances, and sometimes legends
developed about the source among inland peoples.  Gary Rosenberg's
Encyclopedia of Seashells has more on the Ojibway ceremony.  The
shells derive ultimately from European traders, despite the myths,
though it's certainly possible that locally available (non-marine or
traded) shells had been used before that.

Despite the fact that people were collecting shells tens of thousands
of years ago, it's probably better not to describe your interest in
conchology as following the world's oldest profession.

--
Dr. David Campbell
425 Scientific Collections
University of Alabama
"I think of my happy condition, surrounded by acres of clams"

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