3085706 Capturing a Sperm Whale, engraved by by J. Hill, 1835 (hand-coloured engraving) by Page, William (1811-85) (after); Private Collection; (add.info.: USA: A model for Herman Melville\'s \'Moby Dick\' (1851). In addition to Herman Melville\'s own experience on the whaling ship Acushnet, two real events served as the genesis for his \'Moby Dick\'. One was the sinking of the Nantucket ship \'Essex\' in 1820, after a sperm whale rammed her 2,000 miles (3,200 km) from the western coast of South America. The other event was the alleged killing in the late 1830s of the albino sperm whale Mocha Dick, in the waters off the Chilean island of Mocha. Mocha Dick was rumored to have 20 or so harpoons in his back from other whalers, and appeared to attack ships with premeditated ferocity.); Pictures from History; American, out of copyright.