356 IVORY AND THE ELEPHANT
in
skin and hair; there were also several broken ribs, and a small
quantity of flesh, skin, hair, and wool. All these remains were
comprised within a small area, 10 by 7 ft., on the exposed face of the
knoll, and the missing parts are assumed to have been carried away by
the slide which bore off a portion of the face of the knoll.*
The
Alaskan region in which most of the Eskimo ivory carving is done lies
between the Yukon delta and the lower Kuskokwin, much work of superior
excellence being produced in the villages of Askinuk, Kushunuk,
Agiukchu-gumut, and other neighbouring settlements. The attractive
carvings made by the Eskimo people of Ukagamut were in strongly marked
contrast with the squalid conditions of their life. It was also noted
that these Alaskan Eskimos had no high opinion of the value of their
work, for they were usually very eager to trade off a pretty carving
for one or two needles, a brass button, or some such objects of
trifling value, t Still the needles, at least, may have had a much
greater value for the Eskimo than the visitors supposed.
Either
because of a superstitious fancy, or because of some ascertained
practical advantage, the Eskimos of Alaska utilize human fluids to a
great extent in the preparation and ornamentation of their fossil or
walrus ivory, for it is said to be customary with them to soak the
material thoroughly in urine in order to soften it before cutting and
carving. It is also frequently moistened with this liquid as the work
progresses. Blood mixed with gun-powder is used to make a black dye,
which is rubbed into the freshly cut incisions forming the design, to
stain them permanently and thus bring them into greater relief. J
*Quackenbush, op. cit., pp. 107 sqq.
fEdward
William Nelson, " The Eskimo About Bering Strait," 18th Annual Report
of the Bureau of American Ethnology, 1896-97, Washington, 1899, Pt. I,
p. 196.
ÎEdward
William Nelson, " The Eskimo About Bering Strait," 18th Annual Report
of the Bureau of American Ethnology, 1896-97, Washington, 1899, Pt. I,
p. 196.
