DescriptionPair of carey (tortoiseshell) hoop earrings. Made in Cuba. A matched pair of large open hoop earrings cut and shaped from carey, the shell of the hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata). Each hoop is thin, flat, and slightly tapered at the ends, with the characteristic brown, amber, and cream mottling of natural hawksbill shell. Purchased at an artisan market in Cuba. Carey craft has deep roots in Cuban material culture, with tortoiseshell worked into combs, hair ornaments, jewellery, and decorative objects for centuries. After 1959, carey goods continued to be produced and, after 1978, sold through state-sanctioned artisan markets, occupying an ambiguous position between cultural heritage and the international trade restrictions imposed by CITES, which listed the hawksbill as a protected species from 1977.