Turban snail shell cup c. 1560

This Turban snail shell cup was made by an anonymous artist using a nautilus shell, gold, and precious stones. Cups such as this one were made in Europe during the Renaissance, a period when artists and patrons looked to classical antiquity for inspiration. Drinking vessels made of precious materials were a sign of wealth, status, and refined taste. The inscription around the rim and the inclusion of semi-precious stones speak to the patron’s humanist learning. But this cup also tells us about early modern globalization. Objects made of exotic materials signaled a patron’s access to far-flung corners of the world. The turban snail used to create this cup originated in the Indian Ocean and made its way to Europe through colonial trade routes controlled by Portugal, Spain, and the Netherlands. Historians of art and material culture use archival sources, scientific analyses, and postcolonial theory to shed light on objects like this, revealing the complex social worlds in which they were made and used.