This shell, although it has the name of the Great Pecten, is not the
largest of the numerous tribe to which it belongs; it is found in all
the European seas. The regular nature of the fluting with which it is
covered, and the elegance of its markings, have brought it much into
use among ladies, who employ it in making pin-cushions and other
articles of fancy-work; there are about sixty recent, and thirty fossil
species.
[Illustration: _Pecten maximus. Malleus albus._]
The power of locomotion appears to be very considerable in some species
of the Pectens; it is said the animal can raise itself up in the water,
and even reach the surface, by moving the two valves of its shell; but
this is a fact not quite established, as but little is known of its
habits. It is sometimes used as an article of food; but to render it
tolerably palatable it requires cooking.
In some countries, the shells of the larger species are used by the
poorer classes instead of plates. In Paris, the _restaurateurs_ employ
them for the same purpose when serving up a certain preparation of
mushrooms; in England, they are employed in cooking scalloped oysters,
and the shell is consequently known as the Scallop Shell.