Ribbed cockle

Japanese: ハイガイ(灰貝) - ハイガイ（英語表記）ribbed cockle

A bivalve mollusks of the family Arcidae (illustration). It got its name from the fact that the shells are burned to create shell ash, which is used as a pigment. The shell is a rounded square, 5cm long, 4cm high, and 3.5cm bulge, and is thick and tough. It is white and covered with a gray-yellow skin, which falls off as it ages. There are about 18 thick, nodular ribs, and the area between the left and right shell apices is a black, diamond-shaped flat surface. The inside is also white, and there are many small teeth lined up where the two shells interlock. The soft body is reddish because its blood contains hemoglobin. In the local dialect, it is called chinmi, which does not mean delicacy but red flesh and blood.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

フネガイ科の二枚貝（イラスト）。殻を焼いて貝灰をつくり顔料としたのでこの名がついた。殻は丸みある方形で，長さ5cm，高さ4cm，膨らみ3.5cmで，厚く堅固。白色で灰黄色の皮で覆われているが，老成するとはげ落ちる。18本内外の太くて結節のある肋があり，左右の殻頂の間は菱形の平たい面となり黒い。内面も白色で両殻のかみ合わせに多くの小さい歯が並ぶ。軟体は血液にヘモグロビンを含むので赤みを帯びる。方言でチンミといわれるのは珍味でなく赤い血身の意。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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