Why does alicia hold the scallop up to her face?

she wants to identify the barnacles on it.
she wants to look into its eyes.
she wants to make sure it's a scallop.
she wants to inspect the scallop carefully

in my opinion i think it was not excessive at all. the maids turned against the queen in his absence, how could he ever trust them again? if he let them go they would surely spread the news of the suitor's deaths, which is much too risky. as for the suitors, they were selfish, rude, and greedy. the god's had apparently marked them for death, meaning odysseus made their death come faster.