Scrimshaw whales tooth attributed to Samuel W. Tenney (1827-1912). The obverse depicts Liberty standing wearing a long fancy dress and a liberty cap with stars on her head. With her left hand she is holding an American shield which is resting on the ground. Her right hand is holding a chalice with an American eagle resting on the top. The eagle is holding a banner in his beak that states “LIBERTY AND FREEDOM”. This banner wraps around the tooth which is a common practice of Tenny to wrap his images around a tooth. To the right of Liberty are two American flags with a cannon and anchor below. The reverse of the tooth has an engraved triple decker Ship flying an American flag from the gaff. The detail of the ship is excellent showing all the sails with reef points and sail seams. The rigging is also very detailed and the water is engraved below the ship. All of the engraving on this tooth is very bold and strong. (SC1252)
Reference: "Wandering Whalemen" by Alan Granby published in 2022. A very similar image of liberty by Tenney is illustrated on page 75 and a similar image of the ship and water appears on page 76.
Condition: Early on the tooth had a small chip on the tip which was polished many years ago.
Dimensions: Height 5 3/4 Inches, Width 2 3/4 Inches