The scallop shell, symbol of pilgrims
This scallop shell is displayed in a lucite case in the Museo de Peregrinaciones in Santiago de Compostelas. It is an original shell found during excavation of the cathedral and is from the 14th century or thereabouts. It would have been carried by a pilgrim of the period as he or she made their way to Santiago.
The scallop shell is a symbol of St. James (Santiago in Spanish) whose bones are presumed to be stored in a special chapel under the main altar of the Cathedral. Today many pilgrims wear the shell as they make their own pilgrimages. It is a direct link to the deep mythology of this sacred pilgrimage.
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