A Seychelles coco-de-mer nut. (Lodoicea maldivica)
A Seychelles coco-de-mer nut. (Lodoicea maldivica)
Of typical shape and lustrous finish, with truncated, multi-lobed and notched rim, 25cm wide x 23.5cm high, on a later mahogany plinth. Estimate: £120 - 180 - Unsold.
Note: The Coco de mer (sometimes also referred to as the sea coconut, double coconut, coco fesse, or Seychelles nut) is a palm endemic solely to the islands of Praslin and Curieuse in the Seychelles.
Until the true source of the nut was discovered in 1768, popular legend spoke of a mythical tree at the bottom of the sea, as the husks are sometimes to be found floating on the water. The sailors who first saw the nut imagined that it resembled a woman's buttocks, leading to one of the plant's archaic botanical names, Lodoicea callipyge Comm. ex J. St.-Hil., in which 'callipyge' is from the Greek meaning 'beautiful rump' (a suffix also used in describing the goddess Venus/Aphrodite). (Cpyright © 2002-2008 Bonhams 1793 Ltd., Images and Text All Rights Reserved)
Bonhams. The Chester Sale, 1 Jul 2008. Chester - www.bonhams.com