The hard, brittle outer covering of a bird's egg, or a pale off-white color often used to describe paint or ceramics.
Compound word from 'egg' (Proto-Germanic origin) and 'shell' (Germanic origin). The eggshell as a color descriptor became popular in Victorian times when pale finishes became fashionable in interior design.
Eggshells are incredibly sophisticated structures—they're porous enough to let oxygen in for the chick to breathe, but strong enough to protect a developing baby bird! The white color and slight iridescence come from calcium carbonate, the same mineral in chalk, pearls, and coral reefs.
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