Cornus marmoreus shell from the wreck of the Dutch East India ship Witte Leeuw before 1613

This is a Cornus marmoreus shell recovered from the wreck of the Witte Leeuw, a Dutch East India ship that sank in 1613. The shell itself, a humble object, carries a wealth of symbolic and cultural weight, echoing through the centuries. Once a protective casing for a living creature, the shell now stands as a relic, a fragment of a lost world, both natural and maritime. The spiral form is a universal motif that embodies concepts of growth, evolution, and the cyclical nature of time. Consider how the spiral appears in ancient labyrinths, symbolizing a journey to the center and back, or in the architecture of Renaissance churches, representing spiritual ascent. Over time, the spiral has adapted and resurfaced across different cultural contexts, each time layered with new meanings. This simple shell touches on profound ideas of life, death, and rebirth.