Story: Crafts and applied arts

19th-century scrimshaw

Artistically inclined sailors, whalers and sealers in the 19th century spent their leisure time creating scrimshaw (carved and engraved animal bones, teeth and tusks). Both of these examples are made from whale teeth. Zoom in to see the details. 

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Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Reference: GH006340

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How to cite this page:

Douglas Lloyd Jenkins and Lucy Hammonds, 'Crafts and applied arts - Maritime and settler craft', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/zoomify/45265/19th-century-scrimshaw (accessed 25 April 2024)

Story by Douglas Lloyd Jenkins and Lucy Hammonds, published 22 Oct 2014