Scrimshaw Sperm Whale Tooth, 1853
date: label: date made
content: 1853
notes: label: Description
content: The obverse of this large, highly polished sperm whale tooth has a large whaleship carved into its surface, sailing away from the viewer with all sails set. Two empty whaleboat davits on the starboard or right side indicate that the boats are actively hunting. An etched sawtooth frame encircles the ship. The other side is carved with an eagle with outstretched wings; in one talon it grips three arrows and in the other is a leafy vine. In its beak is a long banner containing the words (from top to bottom) "ABRAHAM CARR/1853/SAG HARBOUR L.I." Like the front, the eagle and banner are framed by a sawtooth pattern, and the entire tooth has a swag top and bottom encircling both sides of the tooth. In the 19th century, Sag Harbor, NY was a major Atlantic whaling port. The fine detail of this freehand-drawn tooth indicates a highly skilled and experienced scrimshaw artist.
label: Description
content: Scrimshaw began in the late 18th or early 19th century as the art of carving whale bone and ivory aboard whale ships. The crew on whalers had plenty of leisure time between sighting and chasing whales, and the hard parts of whales were readily available on voyages that could last up to four years.
label: Description
content: In its simplest form, a tooth was removed from the lower jaw of a sperm whale and the surface was prepared by scraping and sanding until it was smooth. The easiest way to begin an etching was to smooth a print over the tooth, prick the outline of the image with a needle and then “connect-the-dots” once the paper was removed. This allowed even unskilled craftsmen to create fine carvings. Some sailors were skilled enough to etch their drawings freehand. After the lines were finished, they were filled in with lamp black or sometimes colored pigments.
label: Description
content: Scrimshaw could be decorative, like simple sperm whale teeth, or it could be useful, as in ivory napkin rings, corset busks (stiffeners), swifts for winding yarn or pie crimpers. The sailor’s hand-carved scrimshaw was then given to loved ones back on shore as souvenirs of the hard and lonely life aboard long and dangerous voyages.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Maritime
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content: Cultures & Communities
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content: Scrimshaw
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content: Transportation
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: From the collection of Dr. and Mrs. Wilbur J. Gould
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1978.0052.22
label: accession number
content: 1978.0052
label: catalog number
content: 1978.52.22
objectType: label: Object Name
content: tooth, whale
label: Object Name
content: scrimshaw tooth, whale
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: scrimshaw (overall production method/technique)
label: Physical Description
content: whale tooth (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 7 3/4 in x 3 1/4 in x 2 1/4 in; 19.685 cm x 8.255 cm x 5.715 cm