Current studies of the <italic>Plicarcularia</italic> (Nassariidae) shells: some clues for the seashells appeared in Bronze Age Gan-Qing area, China

<p indent="0mm">Shells belonging to the subgenus <italic>Plicarcularia</italic> of Nassariidae were unearthed from the Bronze Age Gan-Qing area. However, they have long been ignored and only identified in recent years. Scrutinizing the discovery and research of the similar shells outside China, this paper summarizes the research on the species, origins, collecting and managements, reviews archaeological discoveries around the Mediterranean and relating area, the West Pacific, and the Indian Ocean, and based on which, discusses the possible origin and dissemination. The shells unearthed in Gan-Qing area may have come from the area east of the Mediterranean and were transported eastwards through the western Asia, the Iranian Plateau and the Central Asia. Meanwhile, whether similar shells were exported from the coast of the Indian-Pacific Ocean during the later period is still an open question.