Scrimshaw Sperm Whale Tooth, 20th Century
date: label: date made
content: 20th century
notes: label: Description
content: The obverse of this large sperm whale tooth is filled with the etching of a large, unidentified three-masted ship sailing from left to right with all sails flying. Although it has an American flag at the stern, the vessel is unidentified and there are no visible crew on deck handling the sails or rigging.
label: Description
content: The reverse is decorated with a dove perched in a small bouquet of flowers over a heart with "1863 Susanna" carved in the middle. A pennant at the top of the tooth is inscribed "SAMUAL WIGGENS". There is no one named Wiggens in the New Bedford Whaling Museum Whaling Crew List Database.
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
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content: Art
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: 1978.0052.26
label: accession number
content: 1978.0052
label: catalog number
content: 1978.52.26
objectType: label: Object Name
content: scrimshaw
label: Object Name
content: scrimshaw tooth, whale
label: Object Type
content: scrimshaws
label: Other Terms
content: scrimshaw; Maritime
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: whale tooth (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 6 3/4 in x 3 1/4 in x 2 in; 17.145 cm x 8.255 cm x 5.08 cm