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Attack by a polar bear on Stateneiland, 6 September 1595

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Attack by a polar bear on Stateneiland, 6 September 1595

Veer, Gerrit de

The print shows an episode which took place on 6 September 1595, when a polar bear grabbed and killed a crew member as the latter was looking for quartz. In the background, another crew member is grabbed after some of the crew came to the aid of the first one. To the right we see how the polar bear is ultimately killed with knives and the musket butts.

From the Wahrhafftige Relation, the German version of Gerrit de Veer’s journal, published in 1598. (See under ‘documentation’ for details.)

Please contact Rijksmuseum Amsterdam for reuse and copyrights.

Sources and literature

Veer, Gerrit de, Om de Noord: de tochten van Willem Barentsz en Jacob van Heemskerck en de overwintering op Nova Zembla, zoals opgetekend door Gerrit de Veer (1598)

Veer, Gerrit de, Warhafftige Relation. Der dreyen newen unerhörten seltzamen Schiffart so die Holländischen und Seeländischen Schiff....Anno 1594, 1595 und 1596 verricht (NG-1979-564) (1598)