Pair of Scrimshawed Busks
$1,800.00
New England
Mid 19th century or before
Length 12 1/4" and 13 1/4"
Provenance: McClains Auction House, Honolulu, HI
Randy Nagatani, Honolulu, HI
Busks are long, flat slices out of whalebone ribs that whaling crews decorated with carvings and then gave to their wives or sweethearts once they were back on land after a voyage. Busks were slipped into a vertical pocket in ladies’ corsets to stiffen the garment.