Conch - Other Uses

Other Uses

• Conch shells are sometimes used as decoration, as decorative planters, and in cameo making.
• In classic Mayan art, conches are shown being used in many ways, including as paint and ink holders for elite scribes, as bugles or trumpets, and as hand weapons (held by combatants by inserting their hands in the aperture).
• Some American Aboriginals used cylindrical conch columella beads as part of breastplates and other personal adornment.
• In some Caribbean and African American cemeteries, conch shells are placed on graves.
• In some Caribbean countries, cleaned queen conch shells, or polished fragments, are sold, mainly to tourists, as souvenirs or in jewelry. Responding to a 2003 recommendation from CITES, some countries in the Caribbean have banned the export of queen conch shells. CITES has also asked all countries to ban import of these shells from countries that are not complying with CITES recommendations for managing the fishery. Queen conch fisheries have also been closed in several countries. Conch shells or fragments taken home by tourists from noncomplying countries may be confiscated on return to the tourist's home country while clearing customs. In the UK, conch shells are the ninth most seized import.
• Conch shells are occasionally used as a building material, either in place of bricks, or as bulk for landfill.
• In Grenada, fishermen use the conch shell as a trumpet to announce to the community that fish is available for sale. It is also used at Carnival times in the popular Jouvert Jump where Diab Diab (Jab Jab) mas blow conch shells as part of the festivities. Especially in Guadeloupe, it is not uncommon to hear conch shells being blown near ports at dawn and during Carnival times, too. Many bands are making the conch shell a main instrument.
• In the Bahamas, broken or up-turned conch shells are imbedded into the tops of outdoor walls in an effort to maintain home security; the broken or up-turned shells are sharp enough to cut any intruder who attempts to jump or crawl over the wall.