Nantucket History & People

Ship in a bottle
Nantucket History & People

Ship in a Bottle, Magic or Witchcraft?

Commonly asked questions and misunderstandings about antiques… and the odd or end fascinating bit! We have been making models of ships for thousands of years…wonderful examples have survived from ancient Egypt. Miniature models of a ship in a bottle have fascinated us since the 18th, perhaps even 17th Centuries. What […]

Whale Oil | Nantucket, MA
Nantucket History & People

Burn Clear & Bright – Whale Oil

Commonly asked questions and misunderstandings about antiques… and the odd or end fascinating bit! In the dark ages, homes were lit by horribly smoky and evil smelling fat lamps and grease candles. The superior and extremely expensive beeswax candle was reserved for churches and nobility. The success of the whale […]

Bodkins
Nantucket History & People

Odds Bodkins! Antiques Snippets

Commonly asked questions and misunderstandings about antiques… and the odd or end fascinating bit! The wee cousin to a marlin spike or fid, these little ivory or bone carved “needles” are the most common form of scrimshaw. Sailors crafted bodkins in an endless variety of forms and sizes, presents for […]

Nantucket Antiques
Nantucket History & People

Spill Proof Ingenuity – Gimbals

Commonly asked questions and misunderstandings about antiques… and the odd or end fascinating bit! On board ships (and now in antiques shops) one often finds whale oil lamps, candleholders, compasses and barometers held by hinged circular frames that pivot so that the instrument remains ever upright and even, no matter […]

Nantucket Antiques, Bagatelle
Nantucket History & People, Nantucket Style

Bagatelle

Commonly asked questions and misunderstandings about antiques… and the odd or end fascinating bit! If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it must be a duck… except when it comes to pool tables. As various outdoor ball games were brought inside from the 15th Century onwards, […]

Jennifer Maxwell | Nantucket Historical Association
Nantucket Events, Nantucket History & People

Down to the Sea in Ships

The Nantucket Historical Association (NHA) is pleased to announce the return of the silent film Down to the Sea in Ships (1922), with live piano accompaniment by Grammy Award-nominated pianist Jennifer Maxwell at the Whaling Museum, 13 Broad Street, on Wednesday, July 19 at 7 pm. This one-night only performance […]