engraving (art)

Scenes in scrimshaw on a sperm whale tooth, depicting on one side a naval engagement between two ships, one bearing the French flag, the other a British naval flag, the White Ensign, on the rop of the main mast. On the stern, this ship flies the Red Ensign, perhaps suggesting she was of the squadron that would in the past have flown under this flag; at Trafalgar the division into three squadrons had been discontinued.

On the other side, a single ship is depicted, with three masts and three rows of cannons, flying the Red Ensign.

Collection Information

These objects are only a part of our collections, of which there are more than 350,000 objects. This information comes from our collections database. Some of this is incomplete and there may be errors. This part of the website is also still under construction, so there may be some fields repeated or incorrectly formatted information.

The database retains language taken from historical documents to help research. Please note that some records may feature language and reflect systems of thinking that are outdated and offensive. The database also includes information on objects that are considered secret or sacred by some communities.

If you have any further information about objects in our collections, can suggest corrections to our information or if you see content requiring immediate action, please contact us: enquiry@horniman.ac.uk