ancient Scrimshaw assembler John F Kennedy

It can be said that one of the previous Presidents of the United States, President John F. Kennedy, was partly responsible for bringing aged scrimshaw whale tooth collecting, history and charm to attentiveness while his office and even after his death. There was even a book written titled John F. Kennedy: Scrimshaw collector by Clare Barnes which detailed the variety of Jfk. One might say that Kennedy's aged scrimshaw whale tooth variety started when he was young, when he spent time in Cape Cod and Boston close to the water. It is known that he grew up sailing and had always had a fascination with the sea. He also served in the United States Navy where he was honored with a purple heart medal. His actual variety didn't certainly start until his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, gave him an aged scrimshaw whale's tooth as a gift upon entering the Presidential office.

Whaling historian Clifford Ashley said that the gift of a whale's tooth was a "wish to gift a distant friend with a trophy of the whale-hunt, a huge tooth that in actual friction had threatened [the giver] and now stood a symbol of his success." For Kennedy, possibly the whale tooth represented the life he admired and somewhat to live, the dangerous and romantic life at sea experienced by he and whalers of the 19th century.

Ashley Furniture

A few photos of Kennedy show him sitting in the oval office with some aged scrimshaw whale teeth outlining his desk. Even his desk, given to him by England and called the Resolute desk, was made from remnants of the Resolute warship which was salvaged from the Artic by a whaling vessel in 1885. It is said that persons would send him aged scrimshaw whale teeth as gifts but only upon approval, as he was very single as to what he collected. Kennedy was very interested in collecting aged scrimshaw whale teeth with historical figures together with previous Presidents. He also collected many aged scrimshaw whale teeth with sailing and whaling ships.

It is provocative to note that Kennedy sometimes gave aged scrimshaw whale teeth as gifts. One tooth in single was given to the Swedish actress Greta Garbo after her visit and evening meal to the White House in November 13, 1963. Nine days later Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963. This whale tooth was possibly the last gift he ever gave before his death. It was not known that the whale tooth was given to Garbo and employees of the Kennedy Museum and Library had always wondered where the "missing Jfk tooth" was. In 2000, an laborer for the Library's variety researched transcripts and letters to and from the Kennedy's where they found this message in a note written to Mrs. Kennedy from Garbo: "It was a most unusual evening for me that I spent with you in the White House. It was certainly provocative and enchanting. I might believe it was a dream if I did not have in my possession the President's 'tooth' facing me." The tooth was loaned to the Library from Garbo's neice and heir, while an exhibition put on detailing relics of Kennedy's life.

In 1962 Jacqueline Kennedy commissioned a large whale tooth to be polished and scrimshawed by scrimshander Milton Delano for a Christmas gift to the President. The tooth has the Presidential seal scrimshawed on the whale tooth. Jfk belief so much of the tooth that Jacqueline Kennedy buried him with the tooth in his casket.

ancient Scrimshaw assembler John F Kennedy

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