Yesterday a young 49 foot long (15m) Sperm whale died after being found stranded in shallow water in the Moray Firth.
Today I noticed two jaw bones in the museum. They are covered in carvings known as scrimshaws showing the sailing ship 'Woodlark' and the actual sperm whale. The beautifully intricate carvings are very well done and a notice states:
In 1843 the University of Edinburgh asked the crew of the whaling ship Woodlark to bring back sperm whale jawbones from the Banda Sea in Indonesia. On the long journey home the sailors engraved large images known as scrimshaw, onto each jawbone, showing the whale and the whale hunt.  During the 19th century whale oil was an important source of oil for heating, lighting and lubrication and whaling was big business.
The illustrations are really beautiful and a reminder of the awful ways in which whales were killed in their thousands in years gone by.