All of our teeth are exquisitely etched by well-known artist Marvin M. Cohen, a scrimshaw artist since 1968, and often called America's Favorite Scrimshander.
Just click on the pictures below for a full description.

A Sperm Whale's tooth scrimshawed by a recognized American scrimshander has long been prized as the ultimate nautical gift. There is a very limited supply of legal teeth, and this supply is diminishing rapidly. All of the teeth we offer are etched by Marvin M. Cohen, who has often been called by the media "America's Favorite Scrimshander." He has been a practicing scrimshander since 1968. His work is in a number of nautical museums around the country, as well as in private collections on every continent.

Our Sperm Whale Ivory is part of the very small amount of stock registered by the U.S. Department of Commerce. This stock entered the United States in 1891, before it was realized that these great whales were in danger of extinction. No more Sperm Whale Ivory can enter the United States, nor can any be exported. The supply is extremely limited, and is not renewable. Each piece of Sperm Whale Ivory wearable and accessory is numbered and registered with the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Sperm Whale Ivory comes from the teeth of Sperm Whales, and has travelled througout the world's oceans, sometimes as deep as a mile below the surface. It is the most durable of all of the world's ivories. Its warm golden tones make it immediately recognizable as the very ivory brought back by the American whalers during the first three-quarters of the 19th century.

The whaling industry was the most important industry in early America; at the height of the hand whaling era (1820 to about 1855) 20,000 men and 750 sailing ships were engaged in the whaling trade. Before the discovery of petroleum most household lighting was done by the light of whale oil lamps. Baleen (the hairy plates that hang down in the mouths of plankton-feeding whales) was used wherever a strong springy material was needed (in corset stays, umbrellas and buggy whips)before spring steel was invented.

We have a number of unetched Sperm Whales' Teeth available for commission that await your ideas. We can scrimshaw any design, including wildlife scenes, portraits, your own boat, or any class boat, power or sail. (Scrimshawed Sperm Whale teeth make magnificent nautical trophies.) We would be happy to add your name and the name of the boat as well.

We also have legal pre-1972 Walrus Tusks available for commission. We will scrimshaw or carve practically any design, animals, nature, etc. - And, we also make cribbage boards to order!

Simply email us to start a dialogue, or snailmail us your request and we will return commission prices and pictures of raw teeth and tusks that are available for commission.