Natural Resources

Whalebone and Bone Umbrella

Description

The bony substance from the mouths of whales known as baleen is formed of keratin, like human hair and nails. It hangs in long, parallel sheets from the upper jaws of the blue, right, and minke whales, as well as other lesser-known species. Its hairy fringe filters food from seawater.

Dried out, baleen’s strength and flexibility made it ideal for buggy whips, corset busks, and umbrella ribs before the advent of plastic. A whale’s bone could actually be worth more than its oil. This man’s large umbrella has a wooden shaft, heavy hinged baleen ribs made in short sections, and an ivory handle. Marked “G. Hobbs, Barre,” it belonged to the donor’s grandfather, who lived in Barre, Massachusetts, until around the end of the Civil War.

Date made

ca 1835-1865

user

Hobbs, George

ID Number

AG.169283.01

accession number

169283

catalog number

169283.01

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Whalebone Ruler

Description

“Straight edges” or rulers were used aboard ships as writing guides on the unlined pages of letters, journals and logbooks. The back side of this long stick is marked in 2-1/4, 4-1/2 and 9-inch sections, indicating another usage, probably by the ship’s cooper to measure the level of liquid (water, wine, beer or whale oil) in his wooden casks.

date made

1800s

collected

1960-07-26

ID Number

DL.61.0049

catalog number

61.49

accession number

231930

catalog number

61.0049

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Whale Bone Seam Rubber

Description

Seam rubbers were part of a sail maker’s tool kit. They were used to smooth and flatten the seams of heavy canvas sailcloth, where two pieces were joined or the edges were hemmed before they were sewn. This unusually large example was probably carved from the panbone, part of a whale’s jaw.

date made

1800s

ID Number

AG.025793

accession number

4957

catalog number

025793

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Bone Dice

Description

Gambling usually was banned aboard whaling ships, on the grounds that it could cause too much strife among the crew. But “bones” or dice were easily concealed from a ship’s officers, and crews found out-of-the-way places to spend their free time wagering their earnings, tobacco, or other assets.

date made

1800s

ID Number

AG.024849.1

accession number

1875.4423

catalog number

24849.1

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Scrimshaw Tooth

Description

Women and ships were the most popular subjects for scrimshaw carved by crewmen on long, slow whaling voyages. In this deeply engraved example, a beautifully coiffed and fashionable young lady, possibly in mourning dress, has pulled a locket from her bodice and is gazing at the image of a smiling young man. The curls of her girlish hairstyle would indicate that she is unmarried, although the traditional ring finger of her left hand is not shown. The mid-19th-century date of this tooth is suggested by the style of the dress.

Date made

ca 1840

maker

unknown

ID Number

TR.374506

catalog number

374506

accession number

136263

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Polychrome Scrimshaw Whale Tooth

Description

Even whalemen with little or no artistic talent could carve highly detailed scenes, through use of the pinprick technique. In this method, a picture was cut from a contemporary magazine and then pasted or dampened to stick to the polished surface of a sperm whale's tooth. A sharp pin was then pushed through the lines of the image, which was then removed. This left lines of dots; when these were connected with engraved lines, they formed a copy of the original picture. Most commonly, lamp black (soot) was then rubbed into the engraved lines to make them stand out from the background of the tooth, although colored pigments like those on this tooth also could be applied for variety. The high fashion of this lady's garments bracket a date just a few years after the end of the Civil War.

Date made

1865 - 1869

ID Number

DL.374502

catalog number

374502

accession number

136263

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Corset and Whalebone Scrimshaw Busk

Description

For much of the 19th century, ladies’ fashion required very small waists. The most common way to achieve this was to wear a tightly laced corset, which could be adjusted according to the specific dress it accompanied. Like this example, many corsets were handmade to fit an individual, although they were also available in shops.

One of the most intimate pieces of scrimshaw a whaleman could produce was a bone or baleen busk, or corset stiffener. These were carved and given to a crewman’s loved one, who then inserted it into a matching sleeve on her corset as a unique memento of her beloved’s feelings.

Each of these busks has a cityscape etched into one side. The other side of one has eight pictures, topped by a portrait of a beautiful young woman. The other has a plaintive love poem on the back.

date made

mid-1800s

collected

1951-06-29

fashion

19th century

ID Number

TR.388604

catalog number

TR*388604

accession number

182022

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Corset and Whalebone Scrimshaw Busk

Description

For much of the nineteenth century, ladies' fashion required very small waists. The most common way to achieve this was to wear a tight laced corset, which could be adjusted according to the specific garment it accompanied. Like this example, many of them were handmade to fit an individual, although they were also available in shops.

One of the most intimate pieces of scrimshaw a whaleman could produce was a bone or baleen busk, or corset stiffener. These were carved and given to a crewman's loved one, who then inserted it into a matching sleeve on her corset as a unique memento of her beloved's feelings.

One side of this whalebone busk contains three cityscapes, two of which have busy ports with lots of shipping. The other side has eight vertical pictures, topped by a full frontal portrait of a beautiful young woman. She may represent the recipient of this busk. Below her is a city scene with multiple church steeples over a flag in a precinct. A multi-colored circular geometric pattern is at the center, above a garden scene over a delicate basket of flowers. Next is a three-masted warship, and at the bottom is a large rural villa overlooking a walled garden. Can these pictures be woven into a story?

date made

mid-nineteenth century

mid-1800s

fashion

19th century

ID Number

DL.374478

catalog number

374478

accession number

136263

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Scrimshaw Ivory Whale Stamp

Description

Carved from the teeth of captured sperm whales, whale stamps were used to record the type of whale and number of barrels of oil they yielded.

The stamps were inked onto the page of whaleship logbooks or sailors’ journals, with an empty space in the whale’s body for writing in the number of barrels. This example in the form of a sperm whale is decorated with steel pin heads and a turned handle.

date made

1800s

ID Number

1978.0052.06

accession number

1978.0052

catalog number

1978.52.6

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Wood and Ivory Parallel Rule

Description

Part of the navigator’s tool kit, parallel rules were used to transfer compass points, course lines and other directional information across large charts without change. This large wooden set has a carved ivory whale inlaid into its surface, with a brass tack for the whale’s eye.

ID Number

1978.0052.08

accession number

1978.0052

catalog number

1978.52.31

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Bone Fid

Description

Made of hard wood, bone, or ivory and tapering to a point, fids were used mostly for ropework, such as splicing. On deck, they were also used for breaking knots that might be frozen from overtightening, wet weather, or other conditions. In a pinch, one could also serve as a temporary belaying pin to tie off a line, or even as a weapon.

date made

1800s

ID Number

AG.025650

catalog number

025650

accession number

4798

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Scrimshaw Ivory Jagging Wheel

Description

Pie crimpers or jagging wheels are among the most common scrimshaw items carved by American 19th century whalemen. They were useful, as well as decorative kitchen implements. The fluted wheel was used to cut dough or seal the top of a pie crust to the sides before baking.

This example’s shaft is in the form of a snake or sea serpent, with a tongue in the shape of a three-tine fork. The fork was used to decorate or poke holes in the upper pie crust to vent the steam created by baking.

date made

19th century

Associated Date

19th century

ID Number

DL.388597

catalog number

388597

accession number

182022

Data Source

National Museum of American History

USS Alaska Scrimshaw Sperm Whale Tooth

Description

The wooden screw sloop of war USS Alaska was built in 1868 and spent much of her career in the southern Pacific and Far East representing the American nation in foreign ports. In June 1878, she cleared New York for San Francisco and stopped at several South American ports on the way.

One of Alaska's port calls from 20-29 September 1878 was to Talcahuano, in the center of Chile's coast and that nation's main naval port. It also was one the principal stops for American whalers in the Pacific seeking fresh supplies and entertainment. This massive sperm whale's tooth was probably purchased there and engraved by one of Alaska's crew to commemorate his visit. While the carver of this tooth is unknown, it may have been one of the officers who kept the official ship's logbooks, because the calligraphy on the covers of the logs for this voyage is exceptionally elaborate and colorful.

As this tooth indicates, the Talcahuano visit and liberty calls were memorable. Sent ashore on liberty, 54 of Alaska's crew went AWOL (Absent WithOut Leave), and three more were confined to double irons (feet and hand cuffs) for drunk and boisterous behavior or fighting.

Date made

1878

USS Alaska port call to Chile, Talcahuano

1878-09

ID Number

DL.374477

catalog number

374477

accession number

136263

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Scrimshaw Panbone

Description

This panbone, or section of the back of a sperm whale’s jaw, served as the canvas for a whaleman’s freehand drawing of a busy whale hunt off the coast of the volcanic island of Ternate, one of the Spice Islands in Indonesia and the world’s main source of cloves until the 18th century.

In the lower left, a woman reaches out for her whaleman, who symbolically stands across the sea with one hand over his heart and a harpoon in the other. In her background is a tranquil domestic scene, probably their home. In the center, a fenced precinct labels the main scene. Above, on the right are the named whalers Margaret of London and Sophia of Nantucket. The remainder of the lively scene portrays seven whaleboats chasing a pod of six whales.

The artist has managed to convey loneliness between loved ones, great distance from home, an exotic and remote tropical locale, and a busy whale hunt on a single stretch of whalebone.

Date made

mid 19th Century

depicted

late 18th century

ID Number

DL.057605A

catalog number

57605A

accession number

2009.0206

Data Source

National Museum of American History