Scrimshaw Whale's Tooth with George Washington and Whaling Scene, attributed to Caleb or Thomas Albro, American, circa 1840
InformationExtremely rare and important scrimshaw whale tooth, attributed to Caleb or Thomas Albro of Portsmouth, Rhode Island, aboard the whaleship, "John Coggeshall" of Newport, circa 1835-9. The obverse has an oval image depicting a young George Washington. The oval has a rope work engraved frame with a ribbon at the top which drapes down the sides. Below the image of Washington is a scene with a square rigged ship on a sea with an eagle clutching an anchor and olive branch in his talons. In his beak, the eagle is holding a banner which states: "IN GOD WE HOPE". This is the slogan for the state of Rhode Island. There is a long engraved flagpole from the base of the water into the middle of the Washington portrait. Flying from this pole is a polychrome American flag. The reverse has three scenes. The top scene depicts a harbor view with a ship at anchor, a lighthouse and two other small vessels. Below the waterline is a row of clouds and below the clouds is a red polychrome sunface. The middle scene depicts a ship under sail with three whaleboats with six men in each whaleboat who are chasing two whales. Between the bottom two scenes, the words: "Sperm Whale Fishery" is engraved. The bottom scene is a wonderful view of a sperm whale breeching. Albro teeth are considered amongst the most desirable of all American scrimshaw. Amongst the known scrimshaw hands, the Albro teeth are amongst the rarest. (SC-1356)
Note: Accompanying the tooth is a letter dated July 10, 2005 by Dr. Stuart Frank, Senior Curator at the Kendall Institute, and by Donald Ridley, Assistant Curator at the Kendall Institute. The letter identifies the tooth to Caleb Albro and gives a detail description. The letter also identifies other known examples of Albro's work and makes reference to Stuart Frank's book which discusses Albro in the "Dictionary of Scrimshaw Artists, Mystic, 1991". Dr. Frank states: "This is a fine piece by a major scrimshaw artist, in excellent state of preservation".
Condition: The tooth has a mellow age patina. There is a chip at the tip of the reverse. The chip has been repaired by Dr. John Lake with an adhesive which allows the new tip to be removed. The adhesive attaching the tip is 100% removable. There are a few typical age cracks.
Dimensions: Height 5 inches; Width 10 ½ inches; Depth 7 7/8 inches.
Reference: "Wondering Whalemen and Their Art: A Collection of Scrimshaw Masterpieces". Both sides of the tooth are illustrated life size on page 111 and it is also described.
Dimensions: Length 7 5/8 inches; Width 3 1/2 inches. .
circa 1840
