Natural Resources

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 Panbone Port Scene

Description

The absence of much pinpricking in this elaborate panbone picture indicates a highly skilled scrimshaw artist who was able to sketch the fantastic port scene freehand. The presence of palm trees indicates a warm climate, dominated by naval warships in a fortified harbor with its own lighthouse. Military camps dominate the land, and a smaller factory or mill town on the bottom of the scene is defended by a partial stockade.

The artist has left no clues for the specific location of this beautifully detailed landscape, although the palm trees suggest somewhere in the vicinity of the equator.

date made

19th century

1800s

ID Number

DL.374479

catalog number

374479

accession number

136263

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Scrimshaw Sperm Whale Panbone, mid 19th Century

Description

This large panbone, or section of the back of a sperm whale’s jaw, served as the canvas for a whaleman’s freehand drawing on two levels. In the center of the upper level is a three-masted whaleship with painted gun ports along its sides. Merchant vessels often did this, to look like powerful warships from a distance and thus protect themselves from pirates or other predators. The ship’s vertical whaleboat davits are empty, and the ship is sailing towards its little fleet of four whaleboats in various stages of harpooning a pod of five whales. Four of the whales are ‘blowing,’ or exhaling through the blowholes on top of their heads. One of the whales already has two harpoons sticking out of its back and is towing a whaleboat on a ‘Nantucket sleigh ride.' Behind the ship on the left is an old-fashioned two-masted topsail schooner sailing in the opposite direction. The sea in the foreground is calm, and the scene is placed against a shoreline of low, rolling hills. Below is another pair of sailing ships: a two-masted square-rigged brig follows a brigantine with a square-rigged foremast and a fore-and-aft main. Although engraved by the same very talented artist, the two levels of illustrations do not appear to be related. Judging from the extremely detailed and technical rigs and sails of all the ships, the scrimshaw artist may have been a sailmaker or rigger.

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.

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.

Scrimshaw could be decorative, like simple sperm whale teeth, or they 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.

date made

mid 1800s

1840 - 1860

ID Number

DL.057605B

catalog number

57605B

accession number

2009.0206

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Cod Hand-line

Description

Manufactured in Gloucester, Massachusetts, in 1882, this hand-line is of the type used in the 19th-century cod fisheries on Banquereau Bank, Grand Bank, and Western Bank in the North Atlantic. The wooden reel contains about 25 fathoms (150 feet) of 12-pound cotton line. A 4-pound lead sinker with brass fittings attaches to a bridle and two short lines (called “snoods”), with slot swivels at the ends. The swivels hold two hemp “gangings” and hooks. This rig saved time in removing fish and re-baiting because the fisherman could slip the gangings from the swivels and replace them with new line and freshly-baited hooks. The preferred bait for the cod fishery was frozen herring in winter and fresh herring, mackerel, alewives, and menhaden the rest of the year.

Fishermen used hand-lines when fishing from the decks of schooners anchored across the tide. They stood at the rail, all on the side of the vessel opposite from the side hit by the tide. This allowed the lines to drift out from the schooner for more effective fishing.

In “The George’s Bank Cod Fishery,” G. Brown Goode and J. W. Collins (1882) reported that when the fish were plentiful, fishermen often caught a pair of cod, one on each hook, and that a man could catch between 100 and 200 fish per day. At other times, a whole day’s effort might yield only three or four fish. From The Fisheries and Fishery Industries of the United States, Sec. IV. (Washington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, 1882) p. 194.

date made

1880

1800s

ID Number

TR.054503

catalog number

054503

accession number

12679

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

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

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

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

New Bedford Whaleship Crew List

Description

Every whaling voyage began with assembling a crew from whatever labor pool was available in a port city at a particular time. In New Bedford in late May 1876, 31 men signed to work aboard the 106-foot bark Bartholomew Gosnold for its next voyage. Less than half were from the United States; the rest were from Portugal, England, Ireland, Germany, France and Scotland. The two Frenchmen and one of the eight Portuguese were listed as blacks; the remaining men were of light or brown complexion. Four each of the crew were in their forties and thirties; 16 were in their twenties, and six were in their teens. Three of these teenagers, all from the New Bedford area, were only 16 years old when they shipped out.

date made

1876-05

ID Number

TR.103009.03

catalog number

103009.03

accession number

12006

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Whaler's Blubber Fork

Description

Once a whale was killed and its blubber was cut up and hauled aboard the ship for processing, the chunks of flesh were moved around the slippery vessel with long-handled, two-tined blubber forks. These forks were used to pitch the pieces of minced blubber into the hot try-pots to boil it down into oil. The long handles prevented sore backs from too much bending over and protected the men from getting too close to the boiling oil.

date made

mid-1800s

ID Number

AG.055818

catalog number

055818

accession number

012285

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Whalebone Thimble Eye

Description

This rope-strapped thimble carved from whalebone would have had a light rope through the eye for rigging, perhaps on a whaleboat.

These miniature items also served as children’s toys or curiosities back home. Toys in the form of miniature working ship parts were easy and quick for sailors to carve, and they did not require much skill to make. They also served as potent reminders of where and what the men were doing during their long absences from their friends and families.

date made

1800s

ID Number

AG.025801

catalog number

025801

accession number

2009.0182

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

Wooden-handled Harpoon

Location

Currently not on view

date made

1800s

ID Number

AG.102697

accession number

017868

catalog number

102697

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Whaler's Cutting Spade

Description

After a whale was captured, killed, and brought alongside the mother ship, its carcass had to be processed. First, a heavy hook was set into its skin and the hook’s line was taken aboard. Set on a long wooden handle, the cutting spade was used to cut “blanket pieces,” or long, thick, wide slices of skin and blubber from the body. The whale’s flesh was then hauled aboard for further processing. This example is marked “J.D. Cast Steel.”

date made

mid-1800s

ID Number

AG.237778

catalog number

237778

accession number

045474

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Whaler's Explosive Lance

Description

Explosive lances were designed to kill a whale by exploding inside its body. Many different types were invented in the late 19th century. When they worked properly, they were extremely efficient.

They could either be shot out of guns or set at the end of darting guns. These devices resembled harpoon handles, to which the explosive lances were fixed. Once a plunger touching the whale’s skin moved a specific length, it triggered an explosive charge that shot the lance into the whale’s body.

date made

late 1800s

patent date

1879

explosive lances were invented

late 19th century

patentee

Pierce, Eben

manufacturer

Brown, Frank E.

ID Number

AG.316544

catalog number

316544

accession number

066767

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 Whale Bone Food Chopper

Description

Simply carved and without any engraving, this food chopper, or mincer, was made in two pieces from a sperm whale’s jawbone. Its blunted, curved blade was used to chop soft foods such as bread dough, fruits, sausage, and animal fats. This example was donated by former Secretary of the Institution Spencer F. Baird (1823–1887) to the Smithsonian, where it became one of the earliest objects in the maritime collections.

date made

1800s

purchased

1876-11-30

ID Number

AG.024909

catalog number

24909

accession number

2009.0157

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Whaler's Allen's Gun Harpoon

Description

In the later 19th century, guns with explosive charges shooting the harpoons took the place of hand tools for catching and killing whales. They were much safer, for they could be shot at a whale from greater distances than a hand lance could be applied. They also penetrated the whale’s skin deeper and were harder for the animal to dislodge.

Gun harpoons were also far more efficient, for the steam whalers could approach the prey directly and did not need labor-intensive whaleboats and their highly trained crews any longer.

Designed to be fired from a shoulder gun, this nonexplosive style of harpoon was invented by Oliver Allen of Norwich, Conn. to fasten to whales prior to killing.

date made

mid-1800s

harpoons replaced hand tools

late 19th century

patentee

Allen, Oliver

inventor

Allen, Oliver

ID Number

AG.056230

catalog number

056230

accession number

012333

patent number

5949

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Plate 67. Quarles' Mills, on the North Anna

Description

Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Alexander Gardner, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.

Another scene of picturesque beauty on this interesting stream. The building is a time-worn, weather-stained structure, not altogether free from the suspicion of harboring reptiles. In the river the negroes caught delicious terrapin, and the soldiers varied their rations with messes of catfish. A temporary bridge, constructed from the timber found at the mill, was thrown across, just below the dam, and many were the misgivings, when the rains caused a rise in the river, threatening to float away the frail structure, and sever communications with the opposite bank, a disaster which happily did not take place. In the grassy fields above the mill, the tents of Grant's and Meade's headquarters, seldom far apart, were pitched for a few days. Among the prisoners brought to this place was a woman, clad in rebel gray. She was taken, mounted astride a bony steed, apparently performing the duties of a scout, but claimed to belong to a battery of artillery. A degraded, wild specimen of humanity, of Irish extraction, with a shock of tangled black hair hanging in elf locks down to her shoulders, she proved the centre of interest to the idlers of the camp. At these she would occasionally hurl stones, being particularly hostile towards the negroes, who gave her a wide berth, to avoid the missiles, which she threw with considerable force and accuracy. The North Anna, meeting with its sister stream, the South Anna, a few miles lower down, forms the sluggish Pamunkey, which in its turn combines with the Mattapony, and becomes the York river, under which name the associated streams fall into the Chesapeake.

Location

Currently not on view

date made

1865-05

maker

Gardner, Alexander

ID Number

1986.0711.0283.17

accession number

1986.0711

catalog number

1986.0711.0283.17

Data Source

National Museum of American History