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A scallop shell, shown with its ribbed outer face toward the viewer.
Also known as: Scallop shell
A scallop shell, one of the oldest and most widespread charges in European heraldry. Its association with pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela is genuinely documented, which makes it unusual among charges with a claimed meaning.
A scallop shell borne with the ribbed convex face toward the viewer and the hinge uppermost.
Long associated with pilgrimage, and specifically with the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, where the shell was the pilgrim's badge — one of the few heraldic charges whose symbolic association is documented rather than invented later.
Medieval onward
A fan-shaped scallop shell with radiating ribs and two small flat ears at the hinge, the hinge uppermost.