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1 of 253523 objects
Carved walrus tusk 1934
Walrus ivory, ebonised wood and silver | 6.5 cm (Height) x 4.0 cm (Depth); 42.5 cm (Length) (whole object) | RCIN 36971
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A carved and pierced walrus tusk with animals and fish along the full length, including halibut, cod, seals and polar bears. On an ebonised stand with an engraved silver presentation plaque.
Provenance
Presented to George V by the Company of Adventurers of England Trading into Hudson's Bay (The Hudson's Bay Company) in 1934.
The Hudson's Bay Company was incorporated into English Royal Charter by Charles II in 1670. Its initial and most important trade was fur, acquired with the assistance of indigenous trappers from the region. The Company's trading posts became the basis of official governance of large areas of northern America before the advent of the United States and the Dominion of Canada.
In 1934, an extended tour of the eastern Arctic was undertaken by Sir Patrick Ashley Cooper, Governor of the Hudson’s Bay Company and Director of the Bank of England, who on this occasion acted as representative of King George V. To the Inuit communities he met he read a message from the King, which is recorded in a volume in the Royal Library (RCIN 1047353). Gifts were exchanged, and Cooper may have acquired this carved tusk for presentation to the King on his return. -
Medium and techniques
Walrus ivory, ebonised wood and silver
Measurements
6.5 cm (Height) x 4.0 cm (Depth); 42.5 cm (Length) (whole object)
Place of Production
Canada
