Ostrich egg

The female common ostrich lays her fertilized eggs in a single communal nest, a simple pit, 30 to 60 cm (12–24 in) deep and 3 m (9.8 ft) wide,[1] scraped in the ground by the male.

This uses the coloration of the two sexes to escape detection of the nest, as the drab female blends in with the sand, while the black male is nearly undetectable in the night.

From the first millennium in the ancient Punic civilization, there are many examples of ostrich eggs decorated with painted geometric designs for use as cups and bowls.

[11] During the Renaissance in Europe (15th–16th centuries AD), ostrich eggs were mounted in silver as goblets for display in cabinets of curiosities.

This significance may lie behind the egg suspended above the Virgin Mary in Piero della Francesca's Brera Madonna painting.

[12] In 2020, studies of decorated ostrich eggs in the British Museum showed that the methods by which they had been sourced, produced and traded were more complicated than had previously been imagined.