Scrimshaw

Scrimshaw is the art of carving pictures into bone or ivory. Its roots can be traced back to Dutch whalers during the 1600s, but began in earnest with American whalemen of the 19th century. Prior to 1820, most of the teeth taken from sperm whales were used as items of barter with South Pacific islanders who prized them highly. Soon there was such a glut of teeth that they had lost their value as trade items. It was at this point that purely decorative scrimshaw, i.e. the engraving of scenes on teeth, bone, and baleen, came into being.

Whaling voyages lasted from three to five years. Months could pass between whale sightings. Whalers were typically over-manned in order to handle the boats and the processing of whales; however, there was only so much shipboard work to keep a crew of 28 occupied.

Scrimshaw was the most popular channel for pent-up energy, both physical and creative. Some of the pieces were kept as mementos, trophies of the hunt, but much of the work was intended as gifts for friends and loved ones ashore.

When the Yankee whaling industry foundered, scrimshaw also went into decline, with few artisans still working. It wasn't until scrimshaw collector John F. Kennedy was elected President that the public became aware of this fascinating art: a collecting frenzy for antique scrimshaw was set in motion.

Modern artists began to produce scrimshaw, and the art form experienced a renaissance. Like the scrims-handers of old, this new generation of scrimshaw artists engraved their pictures on whale ivory and bone.

The enacting of the Endangered Species Act in 1973 made whale ivory became a highly restricted commodity. Later, in 1989, African elephant ivory also had tight restrictions placed on it. Much of the ivory used by the scrims-handers of today are the ancient or "fossil" ivories. These include the ivory of the extinct woolly mammoth and ancient tusks of Pacific walrus.