Whaleship Skimmer
Whaleship Skimmer
Usage conditions apply
- Description
- After a whale’s blubber was melted down into oil in the try-pots, a few solids, like skin and gristle, remained floating on the surface of the oil. These were removed with a skimmer. The tool’s long handle helped keep the crew from being burned or splashed with hot oil. The leftover oily pieces of flesh, or “fritters,” were then tossed under the pots and recycled into fuel to keep the fires burning.
- Object Name
- skimmer
- date made
- 1880s
- Physical Description
- brass (part: bowl material)
- ferrous metal (part: handle material)
- Measurements
- overall: 3 1/4 in x 8 1/2 in x 192 1/4 in; 8.255 cm x 21.59 cm x 488.315 cm
- ID Number
- 1990.0018.066
- catalog number
- 1990.0018.066
- accession number
- 1990.0018
- The Development of the Industrial United States
- See more items in
- Work and Industry: Fisheries
- Cultures & Communities
- Work
- Natural Resources
- Transportation
- On the Water exhibit
- Exhibition
- On the Water
- Exhibition Location
- National Museum of American History
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
Nominate this object for photography.
Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.
If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.
Note: Comment submission is temporarily unavailable while we make improvements to the site. We apologize for the interruption. If you have a question relating to the museum's collections, please first check our Collections FAQ. If you require a personal response, please use our Contact page.
