#turtleshell

HE'S COMING HE'S COMING HE'S COMING HE'S COMING HE'S COMING (straight to your house)

THE MAN THE MYTH THE LEGEND

TURTLESHELL TURTLESHELL TURTLESHELL

GO READ THE TURTLESHELL JOURNAL !!!

Pope wear turtle shell plush 🐢 present by believer

So, Pope do tricked to Tedesco 😜

簪 Kanzashi (Japanese hairpins) and いち止 Ichidome (hairstops), handy charts by Edo lover Nadeshico Rin following the kushi/combs and kôgai/hairsticks ones.

Technically, kôgai (hairsticks, rod-like/single prong) were pratical hair accessories meant to hold mage (chignon), where kanzashi (hairpins, with 2 prongs) were used as decorations only.

Historically, two prongs hairpins differentiated from kôgai to circle around sumptuary laws* banning certain types/material for kôgai. (*I remember reading that kôgai could be used as weapons which probably weighted in the authorities’ decision to ban some kôgai types ^^;)

Nowadays in the West, word “kanzashi” often refers to “tsumami kanzashi” ie hairpins with silk flowers. But many types existed, many of which are now mostly seen worn in “traditional”/formal settings (tea ceremony, wedding, or by Geisha/Maiko for example).

As for hairpins types, you can see here from right to left, top to bottom (pins are more or less sorted chronologically):

Right column:

松葉簪 - matsuba kanzashi (pine needle hairpin) - straight forward name for this pin which looks like a big pine needle, it was popular during Meiwa and An’ei eras

紋入り簪 - mon iri kanzashi (crest hairpin) - popular during Meiwa/An’ei eras, this pin had a small crest carved between tab and prongs parts. Women could wear their family crest, but also their favourite Kabuki actors one’s for ex for historical fangirling ;)

輪形銀簪 - wagata gin kanzashi (ring shaped silver hairpin) - a simple yet refined pin which appeared around Shôtoku/Kyôhô eras. Apparently one of the first hairpins having two prongs + tab design

持出し簪 - mochidashi kanzashi (stick out pattern hairpin) - once again a popular Meiwa/An’ei eras pin, with carved flowery motifs sticking out

平打簪 - hirauchi kanzashi (flat crest hairpin) - another well known metal pin (still seen nowadays though crest part is often smaller) which appeared around Bunka/Bunsei eras. It has a flat tab shaped as crest, which can be stamped, carved or cut out

琴柱簪 - kotoji kanzashi (koto bridge hairpin) - the typical “Edo era” hairpin, popular since Kan’en/Hôreki eras. The elegant name is pretty straight forward as it does look like an elongated koto bridge

Left column:

べつ甲花簪 - bekkô hana kanzashi (turtle shell flowers hairpin) - a striking style which appeared in Bunka era. It was first worn by (rich) young ladies for formal/celebratory events. It is now only worn by brides on their wedding day.

べつ甲足つなぎ簪 - bekkô ashitsunagi kanzashi (turtle shell linked prongs hairpin) - a sturdy pin thanks to its connected ends, it first appeared during Bunka/Bunsei eras.

大耳簪 - ômimi kanzashi (big ear​ hairpin) - also appeared during Bunka/Bunsei eras, the telling name comes from its large tab.Edo people used the top part of hairpins (the ‘ear’/tab) to clean wax from their ears (using them much like ear pick/ear spoons) so this could explain the name of this pin - too big to be actually used for this purposed.

玉簪 - tama kanzashi (beaded hairpin) - a pin which appeared in Bunsei era and remained steadily popular through the ages and well into nowadays. The bead was usually made from sango/coral, but many variations existed (like jade for ex, but also cheaper materials like died horn, glass, celluloid etc).

房飾り付花簪 - fusakazari tsukihana kanzashi (tasseled flower hairpin) - a big pin with cute fluttering ornament worn by young girls from late Edo to Meiji era.

銀製花簪 - ginsei hana kanzashi (silver flower hairpin) - gorgeous flowery hairpin made from costly silver, popular from late Edo to Meiji era. Rin doesn’t say anything about it, but I don’t think this could have been anything but a special ornament for formal wear ^^

びらびら簪 - birabira kanzashi (dangling hairpin) - a style well known by Maiko fans! Those fluttering metal pins were popular during late Edo and Meiji era, especially among “musume” (unmaried women, especially refering to fashionable city girls). The beads here are coral ones

Ichidome note - ichidome are small hairpins meant to hold (dome) into place the “tail” (ichi) part of some nihongami hairstyles:

笄タイプ - kôgai type also known 髷どめ wagedome (”chignon stop”) - those pins were used from late Edo to begining of Meiji. They were especially fashionable in Kyoto/Osaka, among girls who wore them with sakkô hairstyle (an hairdo now seen on maiko during their erikae)

Tortoises and turtles actually come from the same family. In fact, tortoises are turtles. They all come from the family testudines, which are reptiles with a shell that is attached to their ribs. We separate them into turtles that live in the water and tortoises that live on the land, even though they are all air breathing reptiles.  Turtles and tortoises have a few other differences as well. Tortoises have a rounder, more domed shell. Turtles have a thinner, streamlined shell. Tortoise shells are harder and turtle shells are softer, with a leathery texture. Tortoises have strong legs that can carry their weight and turtles’ legs are closer to flippers. Tortoises live longer than turtles. The largest tortoise is the giant tortoise and it can live to 120 years. The largest turtle is the leatherback and it can live to about 50 years.

So, what about their shells? Tortoises’ and turtles’ shells are both made of bone. Tortoise shells are made of bone and they have an outer layer of scutes. These are horny plates made of keratin and you can also see them on crocodiles and birds’ feet. They protect the bone of the shell from scratches and impacts, giving it a buffer layer. The also make the color and shape that we know as “tortoise shell”. The top part of the shell is called the carapace and is the big domed section. The bottom part is called the plastron and goes underneath the tortoise, between its legs. The top and bottom parts are joined at the side by bridges. Turtles’ shells are also made of bone, but they don’t have the layer of scutes. The bone in their shells is also less ossified, so it stays softer.

It looks like the tortoises are living inside their shells, but the shells are a part of their skeleton. Their ribs and their spines are fused to the carapace. If you look at the skeleton of a tortoise, the spine runs down the center and the ribs fan out, connecting to the shell on each side. The legs, neck, and tail connect to the spine and are free to move, but the spine and the ribs cannot move. Then, the whole shell is covered in skin. The cutes grow on the outside of the skin to protect everything. Turtles don’t have the scutes, so the top of their shells are covered in skin, which is what gives them the leathery texture. Because both tortoises and turtles are covered in a layer of skin, it means they can feel things touching their shells. Their skin has nerves, just like ours does, so they can feel pressure on the shells.

Most exoskeletons don’t grow and the animals have to shed them and grow a new one each time they get too small. Tortoise and turtle shells are made of bone and they grow with the animal. They are born with their shells and their shells get bigger as they do.

Turtles and tortoises have very strong neck muscles and a very long neck, which is why they are able to move their heads so far and pull their heads back into their shells. They need this because they cannot move their spines and their plastron extends out underneath their heads. If they had shorter necks, they wouldn’t be able to eat.

Tortoises and turtles have strong shells and they look pretty secure, but there are still animals that prey on them. Turtles can be eaten by sharks and other large fish. A Great White Shark and a Tiger Shark can easily bite through a turtle shell. Smaller sharks can’t bite through the shell, so they attack the bits of the turtle that stick out. Tortoises are preyed upon by animals like coyotes and raccoons. They can’t crack the shells, but they can get to the tortoises even when they are hiding. Some large birds of prey, like the Golden Eagle, pick up the tortoises and drop them from a great height, coming down to eat them after their shells have broken. Also, chimpanzees eat tortoises. They pick them up and bang them against tree trunks until their shells break.

So, a tortoise and a turtle cannot live without their shell because their shell is a part of their skeleton and not something they live in. Trying to remove a tortoise from a shell would be the same as pulling you out of your bones. And this is what I learned today.

Read this and 600 other interesting articles on my blog: https://ilearnedthistoday.com/index.php/2023/05/12/can-a-tortoise-live-without-its-shell/