Starfish

Starfish with spines, Mexico, 1970s

This dried out starfish belonged to a herbalist who sold herbs and other items for healing in a market. It could be ground to powder, boiled and the water drunk, or worn as a good luck amulet.

Did you know?

Starfish are not actually fish. Unlike fish they don’t have a backbone, so they are invertebrates, and are more closely related to sea cucumbers and sea urchins.