Transcript

of

Elephant’s Tusk

In

Fifth Report of the Committee on Scientific Memoranda. Trans. Devon Assoc., 11880, Vol XII, pp. 86-88.

by

W. Pengelly, FRS, FGS, etc.

Prepared by Michael Steer

This intriguing story about the discovery of a number of elephant’s tusks from the sea “just under Dartmouth Castle” was presented by its author at the Association’s July 1880 Totnes meeting. A number of local people’s names are mentioned. The article, from a copy of a rare and much sought-after journal can be downloaded from the Internet Archive. Google has sponsored the digitisation of books from several libraries. These books, on which copyright has expired, are available for free educational and research use, both as individual books and as full collections to aid researchers.

19 (a.) Elephant's Tusk: - "Fisherman Fleet on Tuesday brought up with his trawl net, just under Dartmouth Castle, an elephants tusk, five feet nine inches long and about seven iuches diameter. It is very much discoloured, but appears to be sound. It is now in the possession of Mr. Lidstone, jeweller, North street. It is supposed to be part of the cargo of a ship wrecked many years ago, other tusks having been found in the same neighbourhood, one of which is said to be in the possession of Mr. Cranford." (W. T. 13th February, 1880.) (b.)

"On 14th February, 1880, 1 visited Dartmouth for the purpose of seeing the tusk, being desirous of ascertaining whether or not it was a relic of the Mammoth = Elephas primigenius, Blum., of which species so many remains have been derived from the Submerged Forests of South Devon. (See Trans. Devon. Assoc, vol. i. Pt. 4, p. 30, iii 143, v. 39, vi. 235.)

"On calling at Mr. Lidstone's, who, by the way, lives not in North Street, but in Lower Street, I learned that the specimen had been sent off to an ivory merchant in London, about an hour before my arrival. On reading the foregoing cutting to Mrs. Lidstone, she was so good as to inform me that the statements it contained were perfectly correct, and to add that the length - 69 inches - mentioned in the Western Times was the measurement along the curve of the tusk, but that it measured in a straight line, from point to point, 64 inches; sq that the curvature was so inconsiderable as to render it almost certain that it was a relic, not of the Mammoth, but of the Asiatic Elephant = Elephas indicus, or of the African Elephant = Elephas africanus. Mrs. Lidstone also informed me that the tusk weighed 80 lbs.

"I was so fortunate as to meet with Thomas Fleet, by whom the specimen was found. He told me that he was -an oyster dredger and oyster dealer; that he took up the tusk in his dredge on Tuesday, 10th February, 1880; that it was lying on a bed consisting of oysters, oyster shells, and stones, in 9 fathoms water, at low water; that a living oyster was still attached to the tusk in the cavity at its base or larger end; that it was of a brown colour, but that there was no trace of peat mingled with the materials of the bed; and that a tusk, he believes the same, was caught in his dredge about a year ago, but slipped out before it could be secured.

"He added that within the last 18 or 20 years a total of seven tusks had been found at the same place, by his two brothers and himself: - four by James Fleet, two by Alfred Fleet, and one - the specimen under notice - by himself, Thomas Fleet; and that one of them had been sold to Mr. K. Cranford, of Dartmouth, who still retained it.

"On calling on Mr. Cranford, he was so good as to show me his specimen, which, though large, did not attain the dimensions of the new "find." It was of a light-yellow colour, and one surface had on it a considerable number of circular depressions of the size of rather small limpet shells, from which the other surface was quite free. I was assured by all who had seen it that the relic just found had no such defects; in short, that it was perfectly sound. Mr. Cranford's specimen is not more curved than the tusks of existing elephants, whilst all writers regard a great amount of curvature as characteristic of the extinct mammoth. (See Pen. Cyclo. ix. 347; Prof. Owen's Hist. Foss. Brit. Mam. pp. 244-8.)

"The Dartmouth and Brixham Chronicle for 13th February, 1880, published by Mr. R. Cranford, speaking of the tusks found from time to time at the mouth of the harbour, says, "They no doubt formed part of a cargo of a valuable prize, which was captured by Dartmouth Privateers and burnt at her anchors, in the Bight, upwards of two centuries ago." Writing me on the 6th March, 1880, Mr. Cranford stated that his authority for this statement was "An Account of the Capture of the Carrack 'Madre di Dios ' in 1592. It will be found," he continued, "in the Transactions of the Society of Antiquaries and in Archaeologia, vol. 33, and was reprinted in Dartmouth Chronicle of September 11th, 1874"

"Apart from this evidence, apart also from the small curvature of the Dartmouth specimens, it is not probable that so many as seven tusks of the Mammoth, an extinct species, would be dredged up in one and the same spot; and that no other relic of the creature should be found. In short, I have little or no doubt that the Dartmouth tusks belonged, not to Elephas primigenius (= Mammoth), but to E. indicus, or to E. africanus.

"I find that the paper in Archaeologia (xxxiii. 209-240, 1849) is entitled Notes upon the Capture of the "Great Carrack" in 1592. By William Richard Drake, Esq., F.S.A., and was read to the Society of Antiquaries, May 10th and 17th, 1849. It appears that the "Madre de Dios," or "The Great Carrack," was captured by an expedition designed by Sir Walter Raleigh; Queen Elizabeth, Sir John Hawkins, and some of the principal merchants of London, were his partners in the adventure; that the actual capture was the work of Sir John Burgh, or Burrowes, aided by a fleet of ships belonging to the Earl of Cumberland; that the ship belonged to the crown of Portugal, was captured on 4th August, 1592, and reached Dartmouth, 8th September, 1592; and that the prize, the largest that had ever been brought to the shores of England, stimulated, if it did not lay the foundation of, the direct traffic of this country with India. The paper contains a detailed account of the goods in the ship, but without any mention of ivory or elephants' tusks. The ship remained at Dartmouth up to 1594, but the paper is silent respecting her subsequent fate." (W. P.)