Trying-out : An Anatomy of Dutch Whaling and Sealing in the Nineteenth Century, 1815-1885

This study describes and analyses a wide array of initiatives leading to the hunt, by Dutch whalemen, of whales and seals in Arctic waters, the temperate zones of the South Pacific and the waters of the Dutch East Indies during the major part of the nineteenth century (1815-1885) - an era neglected so far. In his pioneering book the author, Curator at the National Maritime Museum Amsterdam, focuses on the men involved in the two maritime industries - be it on shore or aboard the whaleship, as entrepreneur and whaleshipowner, Inn keeper, public notary, client for whale and seal products or, of course, whaleman and seal hunter. Research conducted in many divers and hitherto relatively uncharted archives brings to the fore the organisation and scope of financial involvement from the national government.

Dutch socio-economic and maritime developments in whaling and sealing are compared with international developments in these fields. Peeling layer after layer Schokkenbroek reveals the back bones of the two maritime industries.

As such, Trying-out is what it stands for - an anatomy of whaling and sealing in the nineteenth century.