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Europeans first took to the sea to hunt whales in medieval times. The fatty tissue known as blubber, which is found under the skin of all whales, and the spermaceti wax found in the heads of sperm whales made the ideal fuels of oil lamps: They...
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Europeans first took to the sea to hunt whales in medieval times. The fatty tissue known as blubber, which is found under the skin of all whales, and the spermaceti wax found in the heads of sperm whales made the ideal fuels of oil lamps: They burned with less smoke and odor than other animal fats. Spermaceti could also be made into candles that gave off a bright, clear light. Once the oily parts were removed, the whale’s bones and teeth ivory would be left over. Baleen whales—which include all whales except members of the sperm whale species—also have baleen, a structure made out of keratin (the same material that makes up toenails, hoofs, and horns) in their upper jaws that the whales use as a filter to catch krill, plankton, and other nourishment. Baleen is often mistakenly referred to as “whalebone.” Naturally, artisans started to put this material to use. Vikings in Norway carved the “hard byproducts” of whaling into household tools, Germans and the French carved chess pieces, and the English and Danish made votives for monasteries. While baleen is more brittle and susceptible to parasites, its pliability made it a useful material for clothing boning, umbrella ribs, and oval-shaped boxes. The Vikings also hunted walruses for their tusks, which were longer—and therefore, offered more ivory to work with—than whale teeth. The hunters also used walrus hide, skulls, and even penis bones to make other utilitarian objects. For artists, the tusks they exported to countries around Europe became a more affordable alternative to elephant ivory. During the 17th century, whalers started to venture farther from their shores, and the hard parts of the whale were usually discarded, as they weighed down the boat. Whaling expanded further in the mid-18th century, when the invention of ship’s clocks made it easier to navigate out at sea and allowed whaling ships to take longer journeys. The crewmen started to save bits of ivory, bone, and baleen for their personal...
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