tortoise shell
Mottled eyeglass material
Tortoise shell is the hard, mottled covering of certain sea turtles, historically used to make combs, jewelry, and decorative objects.
The distinctive pattern—amber, brown, and yellow swirled together—gives its name to cats with similar coloring and to eyeglass frames with that look: tortoise shell glasses.
Also spelled tortoiseshell.
Protective dorsal exoskeleton
- plastronVentral shell portion
- scutesHorny epidermal plates
- keratinStructural hair protein
- boneHard skeletal tissue
protective · dome · shield · growth rings · fused · vertebrae · ribs · hardened
Having irregular color patches
- marbledStreaked with irregular patterns
- amberHardened ancient tree secretion
- brownDark earth tone
- goldenBright yellow, or precious
variegated · flecked · streaked · translucent · swirled · dappled · speckled · honey-colored
carapace
Protective dorsal exoskeleton
bone · protective · dome · shield · growth rings · fused · vertebrae · ribs · hardened · curved
mottled
Having irregular color patches
golden · variegated · flecked · streaked · translucent · swirled · dappled · speckled · honey-colored · caramel
comb
Toothed grooming implement
- hairpinU-shaped fastener for tresses
- jewelryOrnamental personal accessories
- ornamentThing that beautifies
inlay · veneer · polish · craftsmanship · artisan · antique · heirloom · buttons · bracelet · brooch
calico
Patchy-coated cat type
fur · ginger · black · female · brindle · tabby · marking · feline · chimera
- Giant TortoisesJonathan, Harriet, Diego, carapace, plastron
- Apollolyre, Delphi, laurel, sun god, oracle
- Galapagosmarine iguanas, marine iguana, Darwin, Darwin's finches, sea lions
- protective structuresexoskeleton, carapace, cuticle, elytra, clamshell
- Chinese divinationI Ching, four pillars, Chinese zodiac, hexagrams, trigrams
- animal printsleopard print, zebra print, snake print, cow print, snakeskin
tortoise shellcelluloid
Transparent flammable synthetic material
acetate · acrylic · Bakelite · resin · artificial
tortoise shellsolid color
Single unbroken hue
plain · monochrome · uniform · clear · black