| 释义 |
wentletrap|ˈwɛnt(ə)ltræp|
Also 8 ventle-.
[a. Du. wenteltrap winding stair, spiral shell, = G. wendeltreppe.]
A marine shell of the genus Scalaria or the family Scalariidæ, esp. Scalaria pretiosa.
1758H. Walpole Lett. to Mann 9 Feb., I have seen a little ugly shell called a Ventle-trap sold for twenty-seven guineas. 1776E. M. da Costa Elem. Conchol. 151 Gualtieri ranks the famous Shell the Wentletrap, or Stair-case, with Vermiculi. 1815S. Brookes Introd. Conchol. 157. 1851 S. P. Woodward Mollusca 16 note, A Wentle-trap which fetched 40 guineas in 1701 (Rumphius) was worth only 20 guineas in 1753, and now may be had for 5s.! 1861P. P. Carpenter in Rep. Smithsonian Instit. 1860, 188 Family Scalariadæ. (Wentle Traps). |