myMountainStudio
  • Home
  • Shop
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Reviews
  • Blogs
    • Mountain Adventures Blog
    • Montana Handmade Blog
    • Fitness Coaching Blog
  • Contact

What is scrimshaw?

4/15/2014

2 Comments

 

I didn't know, either, so when I saw these wonderful engraved products I became curious as to the definition and origin of scrimshaw and decided to look it up.

Here is a portion of what I found ... follow the Wikipedia links to read more on the history of scrimshaw.


"Scrimshaw is the name given to scrollwork, engravings, and carvings done in bone or ivory. Typically it refers to the handiwork created by whalers made from the byproducts of harvesting marine mammals.

The making of scrimshaw began on whaling ships between 1745 to 1759 on the Pacific Ocean, and survived until the ban on commercial whaling. The practice survives as a hobby and as a trade for commercial artisans.

Scrimshaw is being created today still using fossilized ivories, recycled teeth, bones, plastic and more. Some are done by hand and many by laser programed machines."


--Excerpts from Wikipedia

Picture
Running horse on deer antler.

"While scrimshaw is rarely done on whale bone these days, it is still practiced by a few artists.

Common modern materials are micarta, ivory (elephant, fossil, walrus), hippo tusk, warthog ivory, buffalo horn, giraffe bone, mother of pearl, and camel bone.

Modern scrimshaw typically retains the nautical themes of historical scrimshaw, but can also go well outside of the traditional."

--Excerpts from Wikipedia



Included here are some beautiful examples of modern day scrimshaw work on Bolo ties and necklaces by Montana artisan, mostlymontanascrim.

Picture
Chipmunk on fossilized walrus ivory.
Picture
Gray Jay on ivory.
Picture
Big Horn Sheep on antler.
--Nikki | mymountainstudio.com
2 Comments
Ewenique link
4/15/2014 12:24:33 pm

Such beautiful detail on these pieces! Thanks for sharing the history of this unique art form.

Reply
Nikki - myMountainStudio link
4/16/2014 02:58:58 am

You're welcome, Debbie. And thank you for your comment... much appreciated. :)

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Author

    Nikki - handmade connoisseur and artisan/entrepreneur
    @myMountainStudio


    Welcome to Handmade Spotlight ... my blog for and about handmade.
    I would love your comments, likes, and tweets, if you feel so inclined and have an extra moment or two to spare. Thanks! :)

    Email Follow

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

    RSS Feed


    Archives

    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014


    Visit my Shop

    myMountainStudio

    Read my Blogs

    my Creative Life
    my Mountain Life
    Handmade Spotlight

- Handmade in the beautiful Rocky Mountains of Western Montana -
home | shop | about | faq | reviews | blog | contact

Unless otherwise credited and linked, all photos on this site are copyright protected by Nikki Weiss, all rights reserved.
If sharing on a blog or social media, please give credit and link to my website and/or shop. For any other use, please ask for permission.
Thank you.
mymountainstudio.com