C O N C H O L O G Y 



The feconJ genus in this family is the femiporcella:i:c, 

 or lliclls greatly releiubiing the cyprere or cowries in their 

 r.ppearance. Their aperture, however, is not lb narrow, 

 but more open, neither are the lips toothcil or dentated ; 

 which are the differential chara6ters ertibliflied between 

 the two genera. We have (ben that Grew, Rnmphius, 

 Stba, Argenville, Gualtieri, and others, have ranked them 

 as cowiics. Lilter calls them concha 'Vtnerts apertitra non 

 denlald. Linna:us ranks them under bulla, with thenuces 

 or dippers above dtfcribed. Davila, refining on Argen- 

 ville, divides the cowries into two genera, of toothed and 

 not toothed ; which latter is this kind ; and Meufchen, 

 in like manner, makes them a divifion of cowries, by the 

 name i>f lemiporcellaniE. The fpecies of this genus are 

 not very numerous; but among them Da Colfa reckons 

 the poached egg, the weaver's flnittle, and a few other 

 rare and curious ftells; fome of which are delineated in 

 the engraving, 



CYPRE^ffi, PORCELLAN.^, or COWRY SHELLS. 



The porcellain or cowry (hells are generally femi-oval, 

 whofe flat part is the mouth. The fpires of the cowries 

 in no wife appear externally, but make their revolutions 

 •quite latent, or within the body of the ftiell. The aper- 

 ture is on the flat (ide; it is a narrow opening, or vent, 

 the length of the iliell. The lips are near together, broad, 

 turning inwards, and toothed ; the two ends, or extremes 

 on thc\ipper part, are very bumped and prominent. At 

 one extreme it has a wry gutter, or opening, like the 

 mouth of a foal or other flat tifli ; the other extreme has 

 alfo a gutter, but it i^ rtraight or peipendicular ; and be- 

 fide it, in fome kinds, there is another protuberance like 

 a linall rude clavicle or turban. 



The particular charafter of this genus is_ the deep 

 toothing on the inner edges of the lips, which diliin- 

 guifiies it from the foregoing genus of femiporcellans. 

 Linnaeus has adopted this charafter; but Grew, Lifter, 

 Argenville, Gualtieri, and others, not regarding it, have 

 confounded them all together. The cowries are ex- 

 tremely numerous; and molt of the fpecies very beauti- 

 ful in colour, and high in polifh, whence they got the 

 name of porcellain, or China (hells. They have this ele- 

 gant polilh naturally from the fea, entirely without the 

 aid of art; and were they not common (liells, they would, 

 perhaps, be as highly valued as the volutes, or others of 

 the curious or fcarcer kind. They appear to be litoral 

 (hells, and chitfiy inhabit the feas round iflands; for the 

 greateft number of them are found at the Moluccas, the 

 Maldives, Madagafcar, the Eaft and Weft-India iflands, 

 and on the (hores of South America, Afia, and Africa. 



Though the cowries are found in immenfe abundaiice 

 in the living Hate, they are very rarely feen foflil ; and, as 

 tiiey lo(e their colours when in the foflil ftate, it is im- 

 poflible to determine whether any of them are fpecies yet 

 undifcovered alive. However, the kinds found foflil near 

 Turin, and in France, fcem to be well known in the liv- 

 ing ftate. 



Thcfe fliells being found fo plentifully on all the coafl:s 

 of the Indian countries, became very early a fubftitute for 

 inoney j and are Itill uled in traffic among tlie people of 

 Ilindo.uian, of Perfia, China, &.-C. In South America, and 

 in Africa, they are not only ufed as a circulating me- 

 dium ; but their beautiful polifh, variety in fize, and di- 

 verfity of gloiying colours, have induced the natives to 

 ule them as ornaments, appended either to the nofe or 

 ears, or (hung as beads, ancl worn round the neck, arms, 

 body, and legs. Specimens of this Ihell are exhibited in 

 the Conchology-PLate IV. 



Of -TURBINArED or SPIRAL VNirALVES. 



The turbinated (hells, properly fo called, are thofe whofe 

 fpires are external, contrary to the preceding divilion, 

 and which (hew thcmfelves on the outer part of the (hell, 

 in what is called the clavicle or^turban ; which is either 

 produced (hort oi flat, according to the feveral genera or 



fpecies. Thefe turbinated univalves arethe mofl: difficult 

 to arrange, and therefore authors, in their diiierent fyf- 

 tems, have difplayed different methods. No wonder, (lace 

 they only contain myriads of fpecies more 'than all the 

 other three divifions put together; but befides the charac- 

 ters of them are fraught v*i thin numerable diiiicul ties, chit fly 

 owing to the ccntradiftory opinions -of (o many different 

 writers. Conchologifts have nioftly formed their methods 

 from one (ingle, or from a combination, of chai afters ; 

 but Da Colla has fixed on the aperture, or mouth of the 

 (lieil, for the efleutial charafter, in his arrangement of 

 turbinated univalves. The aperture or mouth is there- 

 fore the dittinguilliing mark of the families j and the 

 (hapes, clavicles, colours, and works, of the (lie'ls, are 

 ufed only as fubordinate charaflers. 



The families which fonftitute this divifion of univalves, 

 are, i, the argonauts ; 2, the aures-cochlcas, or ear-form 

 (hails; 3, the cylindars, or olives; 4, the volures and 

 cones; 5, the globofae, or rounded (lielis ; 6, the caflides, 

 or helmets ; 7, the trochi, or tops; 8, tha cochlea:, or 

 fnails; 9, the buccina, or whelks; 10, the murices, or 

 rock-like flicUs ; all of which we (hall explain in their 

 order. 



The ARGONAUT, or PAPER NAUTILUS. 



This family has no external fpires, nor indeed is it, 

 ftriflly fpeaking, a turbinated (hell, except at the vej-y 

 head, which turns in one fpire only; but, the (hell being 

 quite open, this fpire is e;Cpofed fo view; for it is evi- 

 dent, if the .liell w.-.s not open, or vafcular, but, on the 

 contrary, was cloftd or (luit up, it would come imder the 

 clafs of revolved univalves; becaule the Ipires, like as in 

 the common or pearly nautilus, would be latent, or turn 

 within the body of the (hell. But though it is lb unlike 

 the nautilus in not being chambered, yet, in foim and 

 other particulars, it much agrees with that genus of fliells. 

 The definition of the argonaut, or cymbium family, is 

 ftated thus: they are (hells, in their external fhape re- 

 fembling a boat, whofe upper part or head is narrow, 

 turns Ipirally, and is like the ftern ; the reft of it widens 

 to the other end, is quite hollow, forms a horizontal aper- 

 ture, and lies lower than the ftern or fpiral end. The 

 fpecies of this family amount only to iive, of a brownifli 

 or whitilh (lone-colour, and thin almoft as paper, whence 

 they obtained the name of paper nautili. Thefe (hells 

 are by moit authors ranked with the common nautilus- 

 fi(h, by the name of nautili nfacui, on account of their 

 failing ; but it is evident, that in ftruflure they have not 

 the leaft affinity to one another. 



Gualtieri firft made them a feparate genus, under the 1 

 name of cymbium, and LinnjEus alio makes it a diftinct 

 genus, and calls it argonauta. It is this fifti that is the 

 true (ailor, the nautilus of the Greeks and Latins, and 

 v.'hich our celebrated Englifli poet refers to when he fays, 

 " Learn of the little nautilus to fail :" for it does not ap- 

 pear in any Ibtisfaiitory manner, that the other kind, or 

 pearly nautilus, ever fails, or navigates his (Irell. Pliny 

 gives a concife and elegant recital of its mode of naviga- 

 tion. It fails, fays he, after having difcharged or pumped 

 out the water from its (hell, aloft on the fea, extending a 

 membrane of an admirable thlnnefs, and cafting backwards 

 two of his tentacula or arms ; for he rows with the 

 others ; he fteers his courfe, till, refilling his (hell with 

 water, he choofes to fink himfelf to the bottom. 



Thefe (hells are found in many parts of the Mediterra- 

 nean, and alio in the Eaft-Iiidian feas. Argenville, in 

 his Zoomorphofe, gives a recital of the l.iteft oblt?rvations 

 lelative to the animal and its failing. The fi(h is of the 

 fepia kind ; its head is pretty big,, with two large eyes ; it 

 has eight arms or tentacula;, of a loft (lefliy (ublfance.; 

 they are thicker towards the body, and are conneited or 

 webbed together by a flight membrane. They are of a 

 filvery colour, fet with dickers or knobs on the fides, flat- 

 ted like oars, which lerve him to fwim ; and with thete he 

 fecms to row and fteer his velfel. The lix foremoft arj 



Ihort, 



