Murex

Murex


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Murex Family: Muricidae

Murexes are a large and varied family of small to large predatory sea snails. At least 1,000 species of muricids are known, and there are numerous subfamilies. Many muricids have unusual shells which are considered attractive by shell collectors because of their colorful features and intricate shapes.

Murex is a genus of medium to large sized predatory tropical sea snails. These are carnivorous marine gastropod mollusks in the family Muricidae, the murexes or rock snails. The common name "murex" is also used for a large number of species in the family Muricidae.

The word murex was used by Aristotle in reference to these kinds of snails, thus Murex is one of the oldest classical shell names still in use by the scientific community.

Many years ago, the mucus secreted by Murex snails was used to make ornate blue and purple dyes. This dye was used in royal robes, other kinds of special ceremonial or ritual garments, or garments indicating high rank.

Large quantities of this sea snail's shells have been recovered from inside ancient live storage chambers used for harvesting. Allegedly, 60,000 murex were needed to produce one pound of dye. The dye was highly prized in ancient times. Sometimes known as royal blue, it was prohibitively expensive and only afforded by the highest ranking aristocracy. In today’s dollars, the dye would cost close to $10,000 for less than a quart of dye!