Thar She Blows!

Date19th Century

Mediumengraving

Dimensions11 1/4 × 8 1/2 in. (28.6 × 21.6 cm)

Donor credit lineKendall Whaling Museum Collection Transfer

Object number2001.100.8372

Institutional Credit LineCourtesy of the New Bedford Whaling Museum

DescriptionAmerican banknote with whaling panels (five vignettes). Top figure ("Whaling", engraved for Spencer, Hufty & Danforth) shows a whaleboat in pursuit of a spouting whale (whaleship is in the background). Second figure, on left, ("Whaling Scene", engraved for Rawdon, Wright & Hatch), shows two whaleboats in pursuit of a whale, two whaleships in the background. Third figure, on right, ("Capsized Boat", engraved for Toppan, Carpenter & Co.) shows two whaleboats killing a sperm whale that is on its back. Fourth figure, center, ("Whaling in the North Atlantic", engraved for Rawdon, Wright, Hatch & Edson) is a close-up of a whaleboat next to a whale, the harpooner about to stick his iron into the whale's back from close-range. Final, bottom figure, ("Thar' She Blows!", engraved for Spencer, Hufty & Danforth), is a close-up of a different whaleboat in pursuit of a fleeing whale.ProvenancePurchased from Schmitt Investors, Ltd., Woodbury NY, 9/27/1991, $50.00.

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