See: "Ancient Romans Hunted ‘Sea Monsters.’ Were They Whales?" (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/16/science/ancient-romans-whales.html?rref=collection%2Fcolumn%2Ftrilobites). The article provides evidence (not definitive) for a whaling industry in ancient Rome. It also suggests that some of the sea monsters seen on the 1539 Carta Marina depict whales. Joel Kovarsky