The Scallop Shell

The emblem of the Camino de Santiago, the scallop shell, or vieira in Spanish, has been worn by medieval and modern pilgrims alike. Traditionally, pilgrims would take a shell back home with them as proof that they had completed the arduous and perilous journey to the tomb of St James in Galicia, Northwest Spain. Much has been written about the association and significance of the scallop shell with the Camino, such as the story about the apostle miraculously rescuing a knight from the sea who emerges covered in scallops. The shell also has metaphorical significance - the grooves of the shell which come together at one point are seen as a metaphor for the different routes pilgrims walk to reach the same destination.

The shell is also thought to have served a functional purpose, for the pilgrim to eat and drink from and it became a type of badge to identify both pilgrims and the places that would welcome them along the way. Both literally and symbolically then the scallop shell became linked with the tradition of hospitality and over time the shell came to represent pilgrimage in general and not just the Way of St James.

Having walked the Camino myself in 2004 I got to experience pilgrim hospitality (and sometimes the lack of it) first hand. People talk about the spirit of the pilgrimage - the spirit of companionship and community, the determination to bear trials and to help others through theirs, the experience of sharing food, time and thoughts with 'strangers', being vulnerable to the elements and open to the unknown - all this and more. And whilst the spirit or values of the Camino cannot be captured in a scallop shell and transported back home, it is my intention to work towards, albeit in a small way, nurturing something of the Camino hospitality here amidst the hustle and bustle of a fast paced London and this blog has been created to further this aim.