Radiocarbon dating of shells

2. Commercial use

artware

Shellfish, such as clams. Some of them have pearl-like iridescent luster, so they are used in jewelry industry to make necklaces and clothing accessories (buttons, etc. ), even installed on jewelry, more used to make shell carvings, collages, inlaid handles, etc.

tableware

Make a set of tableware with shells. Forks and spoons have their own uses.

money

Shells were also used as coins in ancient times.

Extended data:

Types of shells

1, the number, shape and structure of shells vary greatly, and some types are 1 spiral shells (such as snails, snails and abalone); Some species have two petaloid shells (such as mussels, clams and scallops); Some species have eight plate-like shells arranged in tiles (such as stone turtles); Some kinds of 1 shells are wrapped in the body (such as squid, squid); Some kinds of shells even completely degenerate (such as ship maggots).

2. The main components of shells are 95% calcium carbonate and a small amount of chitin.

Generally can be divided into three layers. The outermost layer is dark brown cuticle (shell skin), which is thin and transparent and has the function of preventing carbonic acid erosion, and is composed of chitin secreted by the edge of the mantle;

The middle layer is prismatic layer (crust), which is thick and consists of prismatic calcite secreted by the mantle edge. The outer layer and the middle layer can enlarge the area of the shell without increasing the thickness.

The inner layer is the nacre (bottom layer), which is composed of phyllodes secreted by the whole surface of the mantle. It has a beautiful luster and can be thickened with the growth of the body.

References:

Baidu encyclopedia-shell