Exhibit case or shadow box (Shellwork or grotto)

Description

This display case contains an impressive example of creativity simply called “shell work” in the 18th century. Such rare, miniature, imaginative grottos are intricately designed and assembled from natural botanical matter, wax, glass, and myriads of sea shells in various colors, shapes, and patterns. Some shell specimens were imported from ocean waters great distances from the maker’s location. Shellwork pictures and cased displays were components of some women’s educational experiences during the 18th and 19th centuries. Unlike shellwork souvenirs, these painstaking and personal compositions reflected beauty and wonder, and also aspects of a woman’s exploration of the natural sciences.