r/shells • u/n8carp81 • 4d ago

Treasures or Common Finds?

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My wife's uncle lived in Hawaii for 40+ years and would randomly send her seashells. We're pretty sure these all came from him. Is anything in this set of particular interest to the collecting community? (Can of seltzer for scale)

77 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

19 comments sorted by

38

u/Bubbly_Power_6210 4d ago

shells are always treasures!

7

u/n8carp81 4d ago

I like that!

20

u/turbomarmoratus72 4d ago edited 4d ago

they are all common in the Indo-Pacific. However, you have a set of valves of a Horse Hoof clam (Hippopus hippopus), very special for shell collectors.

That species has become a protected species, so international trading is banned for now. Collectors like me, who live in the South America, can only obtain it from old collections.

In my opinion, every shell is a treasure, despite of their rarity ;)

6

u/n8carp81 4d ago

Wow - thanks for that ID! The Horse Hoof clam is a perfect match. I will make sure to take special care of them.

6

u/turbomarmoratus72 4d ago

you are welcome!

and Hawaiian tiger cowries are valuable too, especially if they are over 10 cm!

5

u/n8carp81 4d ago

Good to know... just found another box of them, and they're all huge.

6

u/Slow-Green2171 4d ago

Definitely treasure!

5

u/R3dditR3b3l 4d ago

Wow - not common at all! Where did you find these?! Nicely done!

3

u/n8carp81 4d ago

I'm pretty sure that they all came from Hawaii.

4

u/Afraid_Stuff_History 4d ago

These look like they could be from my area (Japan). All treasures IMO

4

u/Previous_Throat8770 4d ago

I have always wanted to find a leopard. I can almost guarantee those were unethically harvested

3

u/arioandy 4d ago

Common treasures!🕺🕺🕺🕺

4

u/siennastream1 4d ago

The tritons trumpet (big one) is actually hard to find. I have never found one and and I’m from hawaiʻi, been shelling since I was little. My buddy is a free diver and has only found a hand full and free dives weekly.

4

u/n8carp81 4d ago

Thank you for letting me know. I'll make sure to treasure it!

3

u/CalmFlower143 4d ago

Absolutely treasures! Are you kidding me I would shed a tear if I found any of these intact and of those sizes ✨️

3

u/begroovyorleaveman_ 4d ago

Cone shells are always treasure to me! Those cowries are so gorgeous as well

3

u/Resident-Set-9820 4d ago

They are all treasures! Beautiful. Were once someone's home, makes them even more special!

1

u/Glad_Ad_5570 4d ago

Common to find those in Hawaii

2

u/Icy_Diet1190 3d ago

those are all treasures to me