Te kati

Te kati. Scraper. This is a bivalvular shell. It is shaped like a short tear drop and is white in colour. Some fragementation can be seen along the lip edge and an open cavity near the hinge area. The exterior is polished and shows fine ridging that define the shells lines of growth beginning from the hinge area. The interior is rough is surface and matte in texture with some white remnants and dappled spots of brown. Te kati is a type of shell that would be used to scrape and prepare te ira (pandanus) for weaving purposes.