WEST COAST OF INDIA OR CEYLON, 19TH CENTURY

The Coco de Mer is a palm endemic to the islands of Praslin and Curieuse in the Seychelles. Until the true source of the nut was discovered in 1768, it was believed by many to grow on a mythical tree at the bottom of the sea. European collectors in the sixteenth century would often have the shells of the nut cleaned and decorated with valuable jewels.