A rare Phoenician Carved Tridacna Shell with Bird's Head, ca. 630 - 580 BCE Jewelry - Pendants and upturned nostrils

and upturned nostrils

thereafter private NJ collection

Australian Art Collector MagazineSelected Solo Exhibitions2008 Judy Watson Napangardi

with excellent incised details to the body and dorsal fin

A rare Phoenician Carved Tridacna Shell with Bird's Head, ca. 630 - 580 BCE Jewelry - Pendants and upturned nostrilsThis shell, carved from Tridacna squamosa, a type of giant saltwater clam that flourished in the warm waters of the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, was used to carve a distinctive type of cosmetic container for a short period between the late seventh and the early sixth century BCE The elongated form has a deeply fluted exterior and a concave interior, the umbo (the protrusion at the top of the shell) is simply but powerfully carved in the form of a