How to See the British Museum in Four VisitsJerrold, Blanchard
History
How to See the British Museum in Four Visits
Jerrold, Blanchard
British Museum
eardrop, and the pyramid upon table 16; the pomegranate from the Cape
of Good Hope, New Zealand imperial, and pheasant, and the West Indian
golden sun, upon table 15; the weaver's shuttle and pig cowries,
including the Chinese variety, highly valued by the Chinese, as an
ornament; also upon table 15, more varieties of cowries, including the
money cowry of Africa, used there as money, and the orange cowry from
the Friendly Islands, where it is worn as an ornament; the five
varieties of the Volutes, including the red clouded volute, the
Chinese imperial volute, the bishop's mitre, and the papal crown,
distributed upon tables 12 and 13. The Melons, the large varieties of
which are put to domestic uses by the Chinese, the olives, and butter
shells, upon table 11; the magilus, whelks, and the needle shell upon
table 10; the purple shell that emits the colour from which it is
named, the mulberry shell, and the unicorn shell, distributed upon
table 9; the tun shell, the harps, the harp helmets, and the helmets
upon which cameos are carved, distributed about tables 8 and 7; the
spindle shells, including the great tulip shells, and the turnip
shells, occasionally used as oil-vessels in Indian temples,
distributed about the tables 5, 6, and 7 are all worth examination.
The splendid cone shells, which include the king of the collection,
pointed out to visitors as the glory of the sea, from the Philippine
Islands, and the African setting sun cone, upon tables 5 and 4; the
rock shells upon table 4: the trumpet shells upon table 3, so called
after the large kinds which savage tribes have been known to use as
horns; and upon the last two tables, the stombs, including the
beautiful varieties from the West Indies and China, close the list.
* * * * *
The visitor has now reached the Southern Extremity of the Eastern
Zoological Gallery, and brought his first visit to a conclusion. He
may well pause, however, before dismissing from his mind the objects
which have engaged his attention.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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