Scrimshaw ---- By Sandra Hardgrove
| Most people think of scrimshaw as an art form practiced
by crew members of the whaling ships. They used whale teeth (ivory)
or whale bone to scratch a pattern or picture into. They used
charcoal or other dark substances to stain their work. There are
art forms going back much further in time that are similar. The
basic idea of scrimshaw is to scratch a pattern and stain the lines with
a color. Today Sandra uses a very sharp carbide tipped scribe to do the scratching. Her material of choice is fossil Mastodon or Walrus ivory found mostly in Alaska. She also has worked on other types of ivory (elephant, warthog and hippopotamus. She also does work on softer stones such as Howlite and Turquoise. Similar themes or animals will be repeated in the future but no two will ever be exactly alike. We can create a custom piece from your photo or pattern. Let us know what you would like and we will try to please you. In one persons hands this tool creates a bunch of annoying scratches, but in the right hands the result is beautiful art. You get to be the judge ! |