Now! Then! 2024! - Yorkshire On This Day

Excerpt

There are two rooms above stairs, one very fair, where the brethren of the society meet, in which hang many tables of orders for the society’s government; another large chamber where they make sails, in the middle whereof hangs the effigy of a native of Greenland, with a coat of skins upon him, sitting in a very small boat or canoe, covered with skins. He has, in his right hand, a pair of wooden oars, wherewith he rows his boat; in his left a dart, with which he strikes fish; on his forehead a thing like a trencher, which serves as a bongrace [projecting shade attached to the front of a bonnet or headdress], to fence his eyes from the sun, and, it may be too, from the dashing of the water. Behind him lies a bladder or skin-bag, in which we suppose he bestowed the fish he caught. (Some told us it was a bladder full of oil, with which he used to allure the fish to him.) The boat is covered over with the same it is made of, excepting one hole wherein he sits, just fitted to his body; so, that when he sits in it, his legs, and lower part, are under cover or deck; the boat is thus contrived that when it shall be plunged by a wave, it may rise again, no water getting into it, This was the same individual canoe that was taken, with all its furniture or remex, anno 1613, in the sea, by Andrew Barker of Hull. The Greenlander taken refused to eat, and died with hunger and sullenness in the space of three days.

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To facilitate reading, the spelling and punctuation of elderly excerpts have generally been modernised, and distracting excision scars concealed. My selections, translations, and editions are copyright.

Abbreviations:

• ER: East Riding
• GM: Greater Manchester
• NR: North Riding
• NY: North Yorkshire
• SY: South Yorkshire
• WR: West Riding
• WY: West Yorkshire

Comment

Comment

Here’s an image:

In 1613 Andrew Barker, an Elder Brother of Hull’s Trinity House & the captain of the Heartsease, took aboard an Inuit in a kayak off Greenland. The Inuit died 3 days later, but the 12-ft skin-covered kayak & its contents were brought home to Hull & are displayed in Trinity House. pic.twitter.com/7HsFqlTpj5— Former Lord Mayor of Kingston Upon Hull (@LordHull) July 16, 2020

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Original

[There are] two rooms above stairs, one very fair, where the brethren of the society meet, in which hang many tables of orders for the society’s government; another large chamber where they make sails: In the middle whereof hangeth the effigies of a native of Greenland, with a coat of skins upon him, sitting in a very small boat or canoe, covered with skins. He hath, in his right hand, a pair of wooden oars, wherewith he rows his boat; in his left a dart, with which he strikes fish. On his forehead a thing like a trencher, which serves as a bongrace [OED: A projecting brim or shade attached to the front of a bonnet or headdress, protecting the wearer’s face from the sun], to fence his eyes from the sun, and it may be too, from the dashing of the water. Behind him lies a bladder or skin-bag, in which we suppose he bestowed the fish be caught. (Some told us it was a bladder full of oil, with which he used to allure the fish to him). The boat iş covered over with the same it is made of, excepting one hole wherein he sits, just fitted to his body; so, that when he sits in it, his legs, and lower part, are under cover or deck; the boat is thus contrived, that when it shall be plunged by a wave, it may rise again, no water getting into it, This was the same individual canoe that was taken, with all its furniture or remex, anno 1613, in the sea, by Andrew Barker of Hull. The Greenlander taken, refused to eat, and died with hunger and sullenness, in the space of three days.

289 words.

Tags

Tags are assigned inclusively on the basis of an entry’s original text and any comment. You may find this confusing if you only read an entry excerpt.

• Greenland (6) ·
• Greenlandic Inuit (1) ·
• Hull Trinity House (3) ·
• 📌Kingston upon Hull (65) ·
• Ray, John (1627-1705) (6), one of the earliest of the English parson-naturalists ·
• Whaling in the United Kingdom (11) ·

All tags.

Similar

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