Maggs Bros.

An engaging Greenland scene, derived from Sieuwert van der Meulen’s classic set of sixteen Dutch images of hunting in the Arctic, here engraved by T. Willson. “It is believed that Sieuwert van der Meulen made the original drawings for the set around 1720, just after the Dutch entered Davis Strait, opening vast new whaling grounds and bringing new vitality, prosperity, and interest to the industry” (Lothrop). The present variation combines three images from that set, showing the killing of a snarling polar bear, the harpooning of a breaching whale, and two whaleboats being dragged on what would come to be known as a “Nantucket sleigh ride.” It was originally paired with another scene showing walrus hunting, though both readily stand on their own. Arctic savagery in striking detail. Scarce.Lothrop Collection, p9, 73a; Brewington, 112.