Model Of Kayak With 2 Paddles Item Number: E7476-0 from the National Museum of Natural History

Notes

See Collins boat MS. p. 817.Source of the information below: Inuvialuit Pitqusiit Inuuniarutait: Inuvialuit Living History, The MacFarlane Collection website, by the Inuvialuit Cultural Resource Centre (ICRC), Inuvik, N.W.T., Canada (website credits here http://www.inuvialuitlivinghistory.ca/posts/12 ), entry on this artifact http://www.inuvialuitlivinghistory.ca/items/91 , retrieved 2-5-2020: Model of a kayak with prominent upturned ends that are distinctive of Inuvialuit kayaks. The frame is made from wood, and the cover is made from several pieces of hide stretched over the frame and stitched together. Deck lashings made from braided sinew for holding hunting implements are attached fore and aft of the cockpit and near the ends. The model includes a double-bladed paddle, and a paddle with a single blade. Both paddles have been decorated using charcoal and red ochre. More information here: http://www.inuvialuitlivinghistory.ca/item_types/32: Inuvialuit used lightweight kayaks for hunting whales and seals, setting and hauling fishnets, and spearing swimming caribou. The frames were made from driftwood, and skins of seals or beluga whales were used for covers. Inuvialuit kayaks had distinctive upturned stems that were useful for lifting them from the water. Full-sized kayaks would have been difficult to send to the Smithsonian Institution, and MacFarlane instead collected accurately made models.