Decorated whale's tooth (scrimshaw) by Charles Hargraves, Ontario, Canada, 1979
This engraved Sperm whale tooth is a modern piece of scrimshaw that tells an old story. The man depicted is Captain William Barron. Barron was the last Master of a Hull whaling ship called the Truelove.
The Truelove was a famously old and strong ship. It was built in Philadelphia in 1764 but came to be owned by the English. It was the last Hull whaling ship to operate by sail, with steam ships taking over in the 1850s.
This scrimshaw was commissioned by Hull Museums in 1979. It is based on a Victorian photograph of Captain William Barron.
Captain Barron served in the whaling trade from 1847 to 1863. He made his first voyage on the Truelove in 1849 and became her last whaling captain in 1861. His memoirs, Old Whaling Days, were published in 1895.
Although involved in a brutal trade, William Barron had a softer side. Many baby seals were also killed on whaling trips for the fashion industry. Barron disapproved and described this as âa remorseless and callous fashion.â
The Truelove was an old Hull whaleship which sailed a total of seventy-two seasons in the Arctic. It was built in Philadelphia in 1764. The English gained the Truelove during the American War of Independence. Like many other ships it was converted for the whaling industry.
Following one whaling trip, a Captain Parker brought two Inuit people back to Hull on the Truelove for a visit. They caused a great stir and were âexhibitedâ in Hull and York. Casts of their faces are in the Maritime Museum, as well as the Trueloveâs flag. What they thought of the trip is not recorded.
The Truelove was the last of the Hull sailing whalers. It sailed alongside steam-engined vessels which were introduced to the trade in the 1850s-60s. On a final trip to Philadelphia, some wanted to preserve her as a museum. This failed and she ended as a hulk on the Thames, broken up 1895.
