Sailors not only decorated the surfaces of whales’ teeth; they could also carve them into utilitarian objects for daily use back home. Jagging wheels were designed to run around the perimeter of a pie before it went into the oven to bake. They sealed the edges of the crust against the edge of the pan or bottom crust and held in the steam heat for better, more even cooking. They could be made in any shape; this example is in the shape of the mythical hippocamp, or half-horse, half-fish. The imaginary sea creature is probably derived from the miniature sea horse found in the shallow tropical waters of North and South America.
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