Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson made waves at the 2025 presidential inauguration, not just for her position as the first Black woman on the U.S. Supreme Court but for the powerful ...

You may have a vague understanding that cowries were once used as currency in ancient times. You might even associate cowrie shells with the Western culture in Nigeria, particularly among the Yorubas.

For centuries, cowrie shells have had a deep cultural and spiritual significance in many African cultures and were once even used as currency across continents. The beige shells have also been used to ...

This Diwali 2025, it’s not just about lights and laddoos; it’s about faith in the smallest things. Cowrie shells, known as symbols of Goddess Lakshmi, are believed to attract prosperity when placed in ...

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... “Before you do anything else,” curator Chris Meyer said the minute I arrived at the National Museum of Natural History’s Invertebrate Zoology collection, ...

Diwali, the Festival of Lights, is not just about diyas and sweets - it’s also a time to invite prosperity and divine blessings into your home. One special ritual gaining attention is buying and ...

Maldivian history is written in a shell; the cowrie shell, to be precise. (Photo: Ali Abdul Rahman via Unsplash) Maldivian waters beckon, even before you set foot on the island-nation. Glimpse the ...

Cowrie shells are a popular element of play across the country. Many games are played with them, and I have learned many rules. Recently, however, I was reading about the game Haaran Gindun — an old ...