COLLECTING SCRIMSHAW

The biggest problem facing the collector of Scrimshaw pieces is the the market is flooded with FAKES! I would caution the buyer to BEWARE!

History: It was Norman Flayderman who defined scrimshaw as "the art of carving or otherwise fashioning useful or decorative articles as practiced by whalemen, sailors or other associated with nautical pursuits."

19th Century SCRIMSHAWS were made of several materials which included:

• Ivory
• Whale Bone
• Whale Teeth
• Walrus Tusks

This category was expanded by collector's to include the many works of French prisoners of war during the War of 1812 and Eskimos carvings.

Scrimshaw became extremely popular during JFK'S term as President.

How to determine FAKES:

1. Patina is NOT a good indicator: as patina can be faked by various methods among them tea/tobacco/coffee juice/oil and dirt. True patina can not be scratched off and is deeper into the tooth/bone or ivory then faked patina.
2. A fine grad hard plastic is often used and fashioned into FAKES: plastic can be penetrated with a hot needle whereas it will not penetrate Ivory.
3. Ivory does not generate static electricity when rubbed, but plastic will generate the static electricity when rubbed.
4. The depth of the carving should be considered and examined when trying to determine if the scrimshaw is real or FAKE: on older scrimshaw the designs carved will not be consistant in depth of cut because the the movement of the ship at sea rocked the ships. Caution should be used at looking at the depth of cut in a design as many skilled forgers of FAKES are able to master the uneven carving of the real deal.  
5. On eBay: Examine photographs well and ask seller questions before bidding and buying. Read Feedback Scores and Return policies. Remember the modern day market is flooded with high quality reproductions (FAKES) Scrimshaws.

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I did a search on eBay for SCRIMSHAW; I was very please to find that many sellers of Scrimshaw openly disclosed that fact that their pieces were Fake/Faux Scrimshaw. However, please be very careful as I did see several pieces that are questionable.

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