Scrimshaw Whales tooth on the obverse depicting two men with their right arms extended upholding together, a genuine inlaid gold nugget. The figure on the left is dressed in miner’s garb wearing a wide brimmed hat. The figure on the right is facing the viewer and is wearing the typical mid-19th century merchant sailor garb with his wide colar pullover shirt and tied scarf holding up his sailor’s hat in the air with his left arm. Below their feet is an engraved line. Above the line on the left is an engraving of a miner's pan and placed into the ground is a crossed will defined shovel and miner’s pick. The reverse has a fine engraving of a sailor wearing a "short jacket" with his legs rapped around the top of a flagpole or ship’s mast. His right arm is raised holding a miner’s hammer and he is nailing a very large wavy American flag to a ship's top mast. The border of the tooth at the front has a saw tooth carving with 5 points with carved circles connected to the points. On the reverse border arw 3 pierced carved circles with looped conection simulating waves. (SC1270)
Publication: Scrimshaw Observer Volume 8 Winter 2024 – “What Whalemen Wore as depicted on Scrimshaw” by Judith Navis Lund. Both sides of the tooth are illustrated in the article and the caption states “Gold Rush Era tooth with gold nugget” on page 8 Fig. 13 & 14. The article also states, “Scrimshaw whales’ teeth with embedded gold nuggets were not uncommon.” This is the only example of a embedded gold nugget that we have examined.
Condition: The engraving is in fine condition with all the engraving lines showing very strong and visible. There is a fancy diamond and circle pieced decoration of the border. Some of the pierced border decorations have been professionally replaced. The tooth is mounted on a beautiful burl wood base.
Dimensions: Height 4 ¼, Width 2 5/8, Inches
