$8,888
Scrimshaw Whale's Tooth, executed by the whaleman William A. Gilpin, Wilmington, Delaware, c. 1838-45, one side depicting a sailor and anchor amidst flowering branches, an eagle in flight grasping a banner inscribed with "FREE TRADE AND SAILORS RIGHTS," the reverse depicting The Corsair's Farewell after a poem by Byron (1814) and a ballet from 1838, heightened with red and black, (cracks), lg. 7 in. Note: The artist William A. Gilpin was formerly known as the "Ceres A. Artisan." There are only two other teeth with this image. One is in the New Bedford Whaling Museum, ex collection of Captain Michael Rodgers; the other is in the collection of John Rinaldi of Kennebunkport, Maine. Two 2 1/8 in. and one 3/4 in. cracks on base, base uneven (not cut level), the side with the romantic couple has a worn area on man's garment.
Auctioneer:
Skinner
Date:
2010-08-14
