tortoiseshell

1) This was a material popular with cutlers for making the hafts of knives, and since it is mentioned in the earliest surviving inventories its use is likely to have a longer history.

In 1692, Thomas Spooner had 16 dozen of tortoiseshell knives and forkes in his smithy chamber, and in 1718 John Winter had 30 pounds of Shell in his cellar.

places Sheffield
dates 1692

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Photo by Kreuzschnabel CC BY-SA 3.0