spiny spider conch shells, 1960s vintage Florida beach vacation seashells souvenirs

OK, so sea shells are something I never find ever in the wild, here in Wisconsin. So I know very little about shells, but are always amazed at these beautiful things. So when I got a box of souvenirs saved away from a Florida vacation 70 years ago out of the estate of a couple in their 90s, I collected these shells and googled shell photos to find out what they were.

I believe these are spider conch shells. They're very heavy like the big conches, but smaller. One of these has a broken tip, but I'd expect that happens a lot to shells in the ocean, even on living animal shells. The colors are so richly patterned, and the spiral shape fascinating.

I'm listing these for you, but I kept a couple of the shells for myself. These are truly a gift from the sea.