On november 20, 1820, while at sea in the southern pacific ocean under the command of captain george pollard jr., the ship was attacked and sunk by a sperm whale Essex, american whaling ship that was rammed by a sperm whale on november 20, 1820, and later sank, sending its crew on an arduous journey to safety. For the crew of the essex, it was a day flecked with hope After the whaleship essex was sunk by a vengeful sperm whale, its crew was left on the high seas for 90 days — causing them to resort to cannibalism In spite of the artistic license and its resulting flaws, the colorful broadsheet is the earliest pictorial representation of the famous disaster that befell the nantucket whaleship essex, predating the first american print versions of it by more than a dozen years. Which was attacked and finally destroyed by a large spermaceti whale, in the pacific ocean
The essex set sail in 1819, hoping for a successful whaling expedition Instead, the ship was sunk by a whale attack, leading to a brutal struggle for survival. The whaleship essex buildings in 1819, the nantucket whaleship essex set sail for the pacific ocean In november 1820, after rounding cape horn, the essex was rammed by a whale and eventually sank Twenty survivors filled three whaleboats, drifting for three months before being rescued. But the story of the essex would be different