These seashells, also known as the rainbow kelp shell, belong to snails found in the tidal waters of South and Western Australia and the shores of Tasmania. Aboriginal women have been collecting these shells and fashioning necklaces for over 2500 years; examples are in the permanent collections of the Australian Museum and British Museum. But these earrings aren't ancient, and the only thing about them that's Austrailan/Tasmanian may be the shells. Either they were made in the Victorian style by local craftsmen for export to England in the 1880s, or the shells were brought back as a souvenir to the UK and the mountings were built to accommodate the shells. In the 19th century, exotic and faraway materials were in super-high demand, and these iridescent earrings would have been a wild novelty.
MATERIALS: 10k gold (tests), Tasmanian maireener shells
AGE: c. 1880
CONDITION: Very good
SIZE: 1 3/8" length measured from the top of the ear wire