t for that reason more worthy of notice, for the small [Greek:
choirinai] (pectines), virginalia marina (Apuleius de mag. 34, 35, and
in reference thereto, Isidor. origg. 9, 5, 24) or spuria ([Greek:
sporia]) were only the commoner and more readily obtained surrogates:
the univalvular shells.

([Greek: monothyra] of Aristotle), such as those just mentioned, and the
other [Greek: ostrea] of Aphrodite, the Nerites (periwinkles, etc.), the
purple shell and the Echineis were also real Veneriae conchae. Among the
Nerites Aelian enumerates (N.A. 14, 28): [Greek: Aphroditen de
syndiaitomenen en te thalatte hesthenai te to Nerite tode kai echein
auton philon]. On account of their supposed medicinal value in cases of
abortion and especially as a prophylactic for pregnant women the [Greek:
Echeneis] (pure Latin re[mi]mora) was called [Greek: odinolyte][298]
(Pliny, 32, 1, 5: pisciculus!). According to Mutianus (Pliny, 9, 25
(41), 79 f.), it was a species of purple shell, but larger than the true
_Murex purpura_. From this the sanctity of the Echineis to the Cnidian
Aphrodite is demonstrated: "quibus (conchis) inhaerentibus plenam ventis
stetisse navem portantem Periandro, ut castrarentur nobilis pueros,
conchasque, quae id praestiterint, apud Cnidiorum Venerem coli" (Pliny).

Tuempel then (p. 387) accuses Stephani of being mistaken in his
interpretation of Martial's Cytheriacae (Epign. II, 47, 1 = purple
shells) as the amulets of Aphrodite, and claims that Jahn has given the
correct solution of the following passages from Pliny (N.H., 9, 33 [52],
103, compare 32, 11 [53]): "navigant ex his (conchis) veneriae,
praebentesque concavam sui partem et aurae opponentes per summa aequorum
velificant"; and further (9, 30[49], 94): "in Propontide concham esse
acatii modo carinatam inflexa puppe, prora rostrata, in hac condi
nauplium animal saepiae simile ludendi societate sola, duobus hoc fieri
generibus: tranquillum enim vectorem demissis palmulis ferire ut remis;
si vero flatus invitet, easdem in usu gubernaculi porrigi pandique
buccarum sinus aurae".

Tuempel claims (pp. 387 and 388) that this quotation settles the
question. Aphrodite's "shell," according to him, is the _Nauplius_
(depicted as a shell-fish, with its sail-like palmulae spread out to the
wind, but with the same sails flattened into plate-like arms for
steering), clearly "a species of _Sepia_," wholly like Aphrodite
herself, a ship-like shell-fish sailing over the surfac