VARIETIES OF OYSTERS. 187 



the breadth of the shell : cartilage large, thick, and strong : 

 ligament narrow and rather slight : hinge-plate broad, closely 

 and microscopically striate across ; transverse rib strong, 

 and raised on each side of the cartilage-pit ; in the lower 

 or deeper valve are two or three short oblique ribs, which 

 diverge from above the cartilage-pit towards the sides, in 

 wave-like lines : inside glossy, tinged more or less deeply 

 with reddish-brown, fluted as in P. opercularis, and having 

 similar shoulders or ledges on the posterior slopes, to 

 prevent contact at the hinge-area : muscular scars well 

 marked, especially on the upper valve. Length 4*5, 

 breadth 5. 



HABITAT : F. Sweden and Italy. E. Spain, from 4 

 f. downwards (Hidalgo). Nearly everywhere, and often 

 gregarious on banks, in 7-78 fathoms. It is also not 

 uncommon in all our upper tertiaries, both new and old. 

 Its foreign range comprises all the sea-bed lying between 

 Norway and the Canaries, and, according to Sars, it occurs 

 with arctic shells in the " postglacial " beds of Christiania. 



If the oyster is the king of molluscs, this has a just 

 claim to the rank and title of prince. In Lister's time 

 they were held in nearly the same esteem ; and the great 

 scallop is even preferred by some, although from its 

 luscious quality it is not so provocative of appetite. I 

 have not heard of its being eaten raw in this country. In 

 the fish-markets of the north of France it is called " grand' - 

 pelerine," " gofiche," or " palourde." In other parts of 

 France they have the name of " Coquilles de Saint 

 Jacques," from the Catholics who annually visit the shrine 

 of St. James of Compostella, in Spain, placing the shells 

 in their hats as a testimony of this pilgrimage. These 

 shells are (or were) also worn by pilgrims to the Holy 

 Land. 



