22

Mid-19th Century

SCRIMSHAW WHALE'S TOOTH DEPICTING HOPE AND BRITANNIA, ATTRIBUTED TO THE BRITANNIA ENGRAVER

Obverse depicts Hope standing with an anchor and the reverse Britannia standing alongside a British flag, probably the St. George's ensign of the Royal Navy, and holding a shield at her side. Both figures with vine patterns on their gowns and deeply stippled highlights. Differing geometric, pique and foliate bands encircle the tip and base.
Length 5.25".
Condition: No significant wear or damages noted except for a few scattered red-orange specks in the area of Hope's anchor. Base cut flat.
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  • Provenance:
    Nina Hellman Antiques, Nantucket, Massachusetts, December 8, 2004. Includes a copy of the original sales receipt.
    The Collection of Michael Gill.

    Notes:
    The vine pattern on the gowns, the deeply stippled elements, the various decorative bands and the clean-lined composition seen here are similar to teeth attributed to the Britannia Engraver, notably two that were part of the Thomas Mittler Scrimshaw Collection, illustrated in Through the Eyes of a Collector by Nina Hellman (2015), fig. 35 and 36, and sold at Eldred's, The Spring Americana Auction, April 8, 2017, Lots #1041 and #1042.

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February 24, 2022 9:30 AM EST
East Dennis, MA, US

Eldred's

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