The Splendid Sands Calendar has been a annual project of ISCS members Leo Kenney, Kate Clover and Carol Hopper Brill since they coordinated for the first in 2008. The calendars are available in November, until supplies are exhausted, from ISCS or the authors.

Portlligat Beach, Cadaques, Catalonia, Spain

Portlligat sits on Spain’s northeastern Mediterranean coast, at the northern corner of the Cadaques peninsula. Overlooking the rugged shoreline is the home and museum of surrealist artist Salvador Dali. Starting in 1930, Dali spent 40 years transforming a fisherman’s hut into a residence focusing on Portlligat Bay and reflecting his unique architectural vision.

The beach is largely coarse sand and pebbles of dark schist and migmatite composition. Biological remains reflect marine life from the rocky shoreline: a sea urchin test segment with raised domes, grooved spine fragments; lacy section of calcified bryozoan colony; bivalves in reflective gold (lower edge, center) and white (upper edge, near center); high-spired gastropods in brown, white, tan and dense black. Evidence of human activity is found in the frosted greenish glass on the right edge. The angular red rod appears to be a skeletal fragment of rare red coral, Corallium rubrum. A section of calcified tubeworm casing sits atop it.