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THE CONSTITUTION TOOTH
Scrimshaw on antique sperm whale tooth
on rosewood, ebony, and mammoth ivory mount.
8"H x
4"W x 1.75"D (tooth only)
12"H x 5"W x 3.5"D (overall)
Winner of the Rudolph J. Schaefer Maritime Heritage Award
at the 1998 Mystic International Marine Art Exhibition
Private Collection
DETAIL of THE CONSTITUTION
TOOTH
The scrimshaw focuses on
Constitution's most glorious period of service, the War of 1812. Pictured
on the front are her three commanders during the war, Captain Isaac Hull,
Commodore William Bainbridge, and Captain Charles Stewart. The sides are
decorated with cutlasses of the period and the sword Captain Hull carried
during the action with HMS Guerriere. On the right side at bottom is an
engraving of an enlisted seaman carrying a cutlass. On the left side is an
engraving in honor of 1st Lieutenant William S. Bush who was the first U.S.
Marine officer to be killed in combat during Constitution's battle with
Guerriere.
On the back are depictions of Constitution's four major actions during
the War of 1812. The scene at lower left (her first action of the war) shows
her being chased by a British squadron. The chase took place in flat calm
conditions over a three-day period off the New Jersey coast. Only through the
superb seamanship of Captain Hull and the untiring efforts of her whole crew
was she able to escape. If captured, there would never have been an "Old
Ironsides".
At lower center the Constitution battles Guerriere. The action
took place about 200 miles east of Halifax and was the first great American
naval victory of the war. Captain Hull's victory electrified the nation and
united the people solidly behind the war effort.
To the lower right is the action against HMS Java. The battle, fought
off the coast of Brazil, was hotly contested, but in the end, the heavier
construction and gunnery of Constitution proved to be the decisive
factors. Commodore Bainbridge's victory was proof that the earlier victory
against Guerriere was no fluke.
At the top is Constitution's fight against two British ships, the
frigate Cyane and the ship-sloop Levant, which took place about
180 miles to the west-southwest of the Madeira Islands. In a remarkable
demonstration of seamanship Captain Stewart prevented the English ships from
combining forces and perhaps overwhelming the Constitution. Stewart was
able to decisively engage and defeat each of them in turn.
This magnificent bull sperm whale tooth came from the estate of a retired
naval officer who obtained it in Hawaii just prior to the outbreak of World
War II. Teeth of this size are quite rare. To have one that also boasts such
pleasing dimensions and extraordinary surfaces to engrave was an exceedingly
rare privilege.
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