Scrimshaw At Runnymede
Collection Guide
Introduction
The information below is taken from
"A Guide to Scrimshaw in Tasmanian Collections and the Legacy of Sir William Crowther", a graduate thesis by Marian Jameson (January 1998) with the kind permission of the author
Runnymede (National Trust of Australia [Tasmania])
The barque Runnymede was built in 1849 by John Watson of Hobart for the Bayley brothers, Charles and James, who are closely associated with the beginnings of off-shore whaling in the region
James Bayley was master of the Runnymede, a barque of 285 tons, built in 1849 by John Watson to the order of Askin Morrison,  a leading contemporary figure in Tasmanian shipping circles. Runnymede was the name of Askin Morrison’s property. The barque was considered a profitable and lucky ship and flew the red gridiron flag of the Bayleys for many years of the total of her thirty-two years afloat. She was Hobart-owned from launch to her wreck in1881. Other Bayleyships were the Wallaby, Fortitude, Flying Childers and Helen; their cargoes were chiefly oil and whalebone.
Bayley purchased the house in New Town formerly owned by the first Bishop of Tasmania, Francis Russell Nixon, and renamed it after the flagship of his fleet. The house had been built in the 1830’s by Robert Pitcairn who sold it to the Bishop in 1850. The house was given to the National Trust by the last Bayleys, Misses Hally and Emma, by way of a lease to the State Government in 1965. A painting of the ship hangs above the fireplace in the Bayley room of this well known and well presented tourist attraction in Hobart. In the Bayley Room, in a Blackwood bookcase on one side of the fireplace, are displayed the examples of scrimshaw made by James Bayley when he was master of the Runnymede. Captain Charles Bayley’s sextant in its case is displayed with the scrimshaw.
James Bayley is said to be the only known master to have a lathe on board ship and perhaps the method of their production would exclude the classification of these items as “scrimshaw” by the purists. There are five engraved teeth in the collection, the remaining pieces being carved scrimshaw. Two of the teeth show the Runnymede and are named on the flags. The child’s tea set is regarded as unusually fine and there are some unusual pieces such as the pin cushion with a vice action and the glove stretchers. The pieces are of high quality and are worthy of inclusion.
A recent discovery of eight whales’ teeth in a garden shed at the house by the Curator adds to the whalebone items. The teeth are in their raw state, barely cleaned, unpolished and in very poor condition. Each has a crude lettering of Roman numerals along the side. These are somewhat similar to the crude markings on an item in the W.L.Crother Library, the hemp rope necklace with two teeth attached, which is supposedly of Pacific Islands origin. The eight teeth are now displayed in the whaling room in the back of the house in an exhibition of implements and photos of the Bayley’s whaling history.
Click here to see the collection (opens in new browser window)
|
