E0224: Inuit- Mouthpiece, Bow Drill

Ethnographic

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Identifier:

E0224

Classification Category:

4:Tools & Equipment for Materials ➞ Woodworking T&E

Materials:

botanical ➔ wood
stone/minerals
glass
animal ➔ hide/skin ➔ leather

Dimensions:

13 cm L
3.5 cm W
5 cm H

Provenance of Object:

This object was held in the museum that Luther College started in 1877. This museum eventually grew into the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, and following this, non-Norwegian American ethnographic objects were returned to Luther and accessioned into the college’s Anthropology Collection. Without additional documentation, was likely obtained by the Luther College Museum (later the Norwegian-American Museum) between the late 19th century and early 20th century.

Use/Function:

Inuit Bow Drill
"One of the most important tools was the bow drill, used for starting fires and drilling holes in wood, bone, and ivory." - Langdon, Steve J. (1993) The Native People of Alaska. Greatland Graphics, Anchorage, Alaska. p. 30.

"Other tools were employed for other specific purposes: the bow drill pierced bone or wood." - Balikci, Asen (1970) The Netslik Eskimo. Waveland Press, Inc., Illinois. p. 3.

"The bow drill could perforate any kind of bone or wood object." -Balikci, Asen (1970) The Netslik Eskimo. Waveland Press, Inc., Illinois. p. 15-16.

"The drill fits into a stone socket imbedded in a block (wooden or ivory) which is held between the teeth, so that the point of the drill can be pressed down against the object to be drilled by the head, leaving both hands free to work the short bow." - Murdoch, John. Point Barrow Expeditions. p. 175.

Source Locality:

Alaska, USA

Description:

Decorative wooden mouthpiece used with two other pieces to drill holes into wood, ivory, or bone.

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