The voice of the Buddha

This hole at the top was made so that the conch can be used as a trumpet. To many the conch is merely known to carry the sound of the sea. But with a hole the right size and by using the proper technique, a conch blower is able to create many more extraordinary sounds. These sounds are sometimes so otherworldly, that they have often been considered by Buddhists to be similar to what the voice of the Buddha may have sounded like. Up to this day they are also thought to have healing powers.

Initially, conch shells protect sea slugs from predators, but they have been repurposed by man innumerous times. The usage of our type of conch, Turbinella pyrum, for instance, ranges from musical instrument to medicine and from religious ornament to bangle. People throughout the ages have used, worshipped and collected these shells. What is it about them that fascinates us so? In this tour we explore the journey of this particular conch shell, starting from birth to travelling around the globe and ending up in the hands of a collector.

I first came into contact with this shell through Fresco Sam-Sin. He acquired it from Peter Dekker, a researcher and trader in antique arms and armor. Peter Dekker in turn bought it from a collector of Tibetan artefacts, who himself got it from Tibetans living in Beijing and brought it to Amsterdam. We do not know when, by who and how exactly this shell was used. What is clear, is that somehow this shell travelled from the floor of the Indian ocean, via Beijing to the Netherlands.