Rafael Osona's Annual Auction Catalog 2019 Rafael Osona Annual Auction 2017 | Page 89

178. POLYCHROMED SCRIMSHAWED SPERM WHALE TOOTH BY THE BRITANNIA ENGRAVER (1816-1830)
OF THE SHIP “ELIZABETH OF LONDON,” deeply carved, engraved and inked with red polychrome highlights, the obverse de-
picts a very active whaling scene with seven whales, one with attached waif, manned whaleboats and a capsized whaleboat. Inscribed
beneath in scrip “Elizabeth of London”; the reverse with the same starboard broadside view of a full-rigged ship underway, under
plain sail flying a British merchant ensign and “cutting-in” a sperm whale. The tip with foliate wreaths, the base with double lines and
dots. Length 6 in. Width at base 2 in.
Provenance: Purchased by a Collector in Hawaii in the 1960s; Sold Northeast Auctions August 16, 2009; thence acquired by private collector
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