MartinBryant
New Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- None so far. Hoping to walk Camino Frances in September 2020
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Certainly not required. In the distant past they were the badge of those who had completed the pilgrimage to Santiago. These days people often carry them from the start of their journey. But there is nothing 'official' about it and if you are walking on a Camino route people are likely to assume you are a pilgrim whether you carry a shell or not!Is the shell just as a souvenir of your journey? Or is it required as some sort of official ID?
Scallops are part of the Spencer family arms here in the UK and ended up being part of the personal arms and royal standard of the late Diana Princess of Wales.For one modern evolution from an armorial device into a famous iconic brand symbol read this account of the Shell oil company.
Must have been because one of them did the pilgrimage to Santiago? (I have no idea...)Scallops are part of the Spencer family arms here in the UK and ended up being part of the personal arms and royal standard of the late Diana Princess of Wales.
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Nope. The Spencer brothers were successful and upwardly mobile sheep graziers and were granted arms in 1504 and they originally opted for seagulls in their coat of arms. They were later knighted and then remodelled their coat of arms; it's a long story but basically their new coat of arms was inspired by the coat of arms of a family with a similar name to which they were however not related.Must have been because one of them did the pilgrimage to Santiago? (I have no idea...)
The shell also was used in previous eras to scoop water to drink and sometimes as a plate or bowl.Certainly not required. In the distant past they were the badge of those who had completed the pilgrimage to Santiago. These days people often carry them from the start of their journey. But there is nothing 'official' about it and if you are walking on a Camino route people are likely to assume you are a pilgrim whether you carry a shell or not!
Some chapters of American Pilgrims on the Camino, and some churches, do a Pilgrim Blessing for members before they go, providing the shell as a symbol of solidarity and support. It is not required that one carry it en route. I have gotten a number of tiny silver charms with versions of the scallop shell, which I wear on a chain.On my first Camino I got a scallop shell out of the sea at one of the local beaches here in New Zealand and at the finish of the Camino I left it in Santiago. On my second Camino I got a shell from the same beach but at the finish in Fisterra I waded into the little beach past the fish market and threw it into the water. This time I got a smaller scallop shell for this year's Camino which I will bring back home with me as a memento of the trip and to use again on the next one.
I have often read this claim in recent years but have never seen any reference to this in historic sources. Can you point me towards any original evidence that supports the idea?The shell also was used in previous eras to scoop water to drink and sometimes as a plate or bowl.
@Bradypus, what possessed you, an active and long-standing member of this forum, to ask this questionI have often read this claim in recent years but have never seen any reference to this in historic sources. Can you point me towards any original evidence that supports the idea?
Interesting philosophical question I suppose - how often does an invented "fact" have to be repeated before it becomes unquestionably true? I am far from convinced of the "food bowl" theory but I would love to see solid historical evidence that proves me wrong. The only references I can find to the idea are recent and no one cites their sources@Bradypus, what possessed you, an active and long-standing member of this forum, to ask this question? This is a narrative that has acquired eternal life. Unkillable.
Read in the famous Codex Calixtinus, Book 3 which discusses the moving of St James body to Spain and resultant use of shells. SeeThis interested me enough to start a bit of internet researching, to see if I could find when the scallop shell and St James were first linked in historic sources. We take it for granted today, but it was not always so. It sounds like the 11th century, in association with pilgrimage to the shrine. Before that St James was not really distinguished from the other apostles. Can anyone provide more accurate information?
I'm too lazy to google something but if memory doesn't fail me the sources for the idea that pilgrims may have used the shell for scooping water are probably 19th century sources when in particular Spanish/Galician scholars revived the interest in the historical Santiago pilgrimage.I am far from convinced of the "food bowl" theory but I would love to see solid historical evidence that proves me wrong. The only references I can find to the idea are recent and no one cites their sources
@Kathar1naWe use it because it appeals to our romantic or imaginative nature. And that's why it doesn't matter one bit today whether you acquire your shell in SJPP, pick it up on a beach, order it from your local or national pilgrim association or get it upon arrival in Santiago.
Erm ... how did we get to this point? There’s nothing wrong with being imaginative. Anyone who walks the Camino Francés, or lives along it for that matter, will have noticed the abundance of shells that contemporary pilgrims carry. I would even go so far as to say that carrying a shell TO Santiago, and in recent years even carrying a shell to Santiago for someone else, has meaning for many and has become a new tradition. It is something that really has caught on. It appeals to people.[Many pilgrims carry the shell, and we do not all have a "romantic or imaginative nature."
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