WHALING VIGNETTES

Obsolete banknotes are a growing market for Paper Money collectors for their history and interesting vignettes. Whaling scenes are among the most popular vignettes, with ten variations known to the author. Because New England, and more specifically Massachusetts, once housed a booming whaling industry from the late 17th century all the way to the 19th century, banknote engravers in America from the 1830s to the 1860s decided to feature these vignettes in their designs to build connections with the communities they served.

Nantucket, MA - Manufacturers & Mechanics Bank $3 Dec. 5, 1843 MA-845 G18 SENC, W-2270-003-G100 PMG Very Fine 20

The whaling industry went out into the seven seas of the world and hunted sperm whales (and occasionally other species of whales) for their spermaceti stored in a sperm whale's head. This fluid, once boiled down and processed, made oil for streetlamps, lighting homes, and the grease for machinery at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the United States and around the world. Countless sperm whales were killed for their spermaceti, almost bringing the species to extinction and possibly eliminating males over 80 feet in length from the sperm whales' genetic makeup. Through these vignettes, modern collectors can see how terrifying hunting a sperm whale can be. It was a dangerous job that saw many men lose either a limb or sometimes even their lives.

Naturally these vignettes are more violent and dramatic compared to other vignettes more commonly used on Obsolete currency. The most frequently used whaling scene depicts a boatswain holding a harpoon as he readies to throw it into the whale's side. Other variations show the whale's death throes or its struggle against the whalers. The total number of vignettes depicting the whaling industry is small, numbering to about ten, with the vignette titled South Sea Whale Fishery by artist Ambrose Louis Garneray being the most common vignette type. Collectors usually find this vignette on the $2 Stonington Bank note from Stonington, CT. It also appears on the Commercial Bank of New Jersey $5 note from Perth Amboy, NJ and a few others. A very similar vignette, though not as artistically impressive, can be seen on the $1 Mechanics Bank note from New Bedford, MA. The Stonington Bank $10 uses another vignette titled Dying Struggles of the Spermaceti Whale, by artist James Stewart, also another relatively common vignette. Some engravers chose to recreate images from other artists paintings, such as Capturing a Sperm Whale by William Page that is on the Newark Whaling, Sealing & Manufacturing Co. notes (multiple denominations), based in Newark, NJ.

Interestingly, only one bank from the town of Nantucket, MA issued notes with a whaling vignette at center, as far as we know. It was only the $1, $3 and $5 notes from the Manufacturers & Mechanics Bank between the 1830s and 1840s. The action depicted in this scene is similar to the vignette South Sea Whale Fishery, however this scene holds more realism. The whalers are tiny in comparison to the large sperm whale, which on this note looks more accurate than the other vignettes. It is entirely likely that whoever created this image had either observed such a scene on a whaling expedition or knew someone who had. Either is likely given Nantucket is arguably the most famous town associated with whaling culture in American history. One other bank issued a note with a whaling scene on it, but as a side vignette. The Citizens' Bank of Nantucket issued a $3 note in the 1840s with a vignette similar in subject matter to the Dying Struggles of the Spermaceti Whale, as seen on the Stonington Bank $10, on the far-left side. Surprisingly, these notes were issued after Nantucket had stopped being the largest whaling port in America, having lost the title to New Bedford, MA in the early 1820s.

Nantucket, MA - Citizens Bank $3 Jan. 16, 1844 MA-840 G16 SENC. PCGS Very Fine 25 Apparent

While the practice of commercial whaling has thankfully become increasingly unpopular and the desire for whale blubber and oil has practically been eliminated by modern advancements, depictions of this industry fascinate collectors to this day. Many nations have abandoned whaling as part of their commercial fishing practices; however, Japan, Norway, and Iceland are the exceptions to this. One other exception is for specific indigenous groups in the Arctic who practice subsistence whaling as a continuation of practices done by hunters for centuries to feed community members. Whaling's legacy survives in part through these notes. Through this brief explanation of whaling vignettes and their part in American history, I hope current and future collectors can better appreciate the history they hold in their collections and the importance of including Obsolete currency in their U.S. Paper Money collections.

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