Dating back to 400BC, scallops have played a prominent part in man's religious, artistic and architectural development. The shell features in numerous works of art, the most famous example being Botticelli's masterpiece The Birth of Venus. In Greek mythology, Aphrodite (the Greek equivalent to the Roman goddess Venus) was born and arose from the sea foam that resulted from Cronus (the new order of gods) flinging the severed genitals of Uranus (the old order of gods) into the ocean. A giant scallop shell then carried her to the island of Cyprus where her reign began.