PAINTINGS - (a) HARBOR PORPOISE (b) VAQUITA

c. 1975
Subcollections
Overview

2 paintings in single framed work (a) Harbor porpoise - stout, dark gray back, lighter gray/ white underside, with distinctive triangular dorsal fin and rounded head (38.) (b) Vaquita - small, robust bodied, dark grey with lighter gray, white underbelly, and black patch around lips, resembling a "smile", triangular dorsal fin and rounded head (39.); gouache on blue card, framed and mounted with inscription.

Historical information

Collection of 106 of paintings by Richard Ellis that were selected by the Smithsonian Institution to form a traveling exhibit of the marine mammals of the world. The collection was purchased by Perth businessman Kevin Parry in 1985 and donated to Whale World, now known as Albany's Historic Whaling Station.

(on verso Smithsonian label checklist # 38, 39, Packing case # c.1 (Full details on Data Record Sheet) These prints have been split up & reframed (c) (d) is now RE.1999.443.a.b Now nothing on verso.

Details

Details

Registration number
cwa-org-128-RE1999.320a,b
Item type
Width
810 mm
Height or length
440 mm
Depth
15 mm
Inscriptions and markings

HARBOR PORPOISE (Phocoena phocoena)
The name "porpoise" is derived from the Latin porcus pisces, ("pig-fish"). Phocoena (pronounced fo-SEEN-a) is the commonest cetacean in European waters, and is also found in the inshore waters of the North Pacific. The harbor porpoise is commonly encountered in river mouths, and has even been found upstream in various European rivers, including the Seine, the Thames, and the Danube. This is among the smallest of the oceanic porpoises, rarely reaching a length of 5 feet, and mature animals usually weigh less than 130 pounds. Harbor porpoises strand frequently in Europe and North America, and the species has the dubious distinction of being the most frequent strander on British coasts, with a total of 779 such events 1913-77.

VAQUITA (Phocoena simus)
Also know as the cochito, this close relative of the harbor porpoise is known only from the Gulf of California, between Baja and mainland Mexico. It is even smaller than the harbor porpoise, and may be the smallest of all cetaceans. Mature individuals have been measured at 4½ feet. It is similar in coloration to the harbor porpoise, although the mouth -to-flipper stripe is not as distinct, and the dorsal fin is said to be more sharply curved. Because of pressure by Mexican shark fishermen, this little-known species is believed to be seriously endangered.
39.

Original Verso Smithsonian label checklist # 38, 39,Packing case # 2. Reframed - No Verso

Contextual information

The paintings represent a body of work by well-known American marine conservationist, author, artist and natural historian Richard Ellis (1938-2024).

Place made
United States
Year
Primary significance criteria
Artistic or aesthetic significance
Scientific or research significance
Comparative significance criteria
Object’s condition or completeness
Rare or representative
Well provenanced
Last modified
Wednesday, 15 October, 2025
Completeness
100
Permissions

Reproduction or publication with Albany’s Historic Whaling Station permission only.

Albany's Historic Whaling Station

Albany's Historic Whaling Station

2 paintings in single framed work (a) Harbor porpoise -  stout, dark gray back, lighter gray/ white  underside, with distinctive triangular dorsal fin and rounded head (38.) (b) Vaquita - small, robust bodied, dark grey with lighter gray, white underbelly, and black patch around lips, resembling a "smile", triangular dorsal fin  and  rounded head (39.), on  blue card with inscription.

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