Title
snow.knife
Identifier
Description
Curved blade (tusk ivory) with two parallel incised lines along outer curve on each side, pointed butt fits into V on handle, made in wood with hook at end. Handle sewn to blade by thongs in twisted sinew at three points, through perforations in handle and blade.
Date
Early: 1850 Late: 1909
Format
L: 377 mm L(blade): 280 mm W: 38 mm
Coverage
North.America Canada Labrador
Creator
Macgregor, William Sir
Source
Inuit
Relation
wood ivory sinew
Contributor
Macgregor, William Sir
Abstract
The Inuit of Arctic America used all the natural resources that were available to them, particularly animals, such as seal, caribou, walrus and whales, and they processed their skins, bones, tendons and even intestines into food, clothing, and equipment. They had a number of knives developed to help in this work, for scraping and cutting skins, processing tendons, cutting and removing snow, and in preparing food. This is a snow-knife which would have been used either to cut snow blocks for houses or for scraping snow off clothing. The flat, curved blade is made from tusk ivory. One face is flatter than the other and the inner edge is sharp. Two incised parallel lines run along both sides of the outer, blunt edge. The blade has a V notch where it is fixed to the wooden handle by sinews passing through perforations. The handle has a hook on the end to give a better grip. this feature is often seen on Inuit knives and scrapers. The snow-knife is thought to come from Labrador, Canada and to date from the early 20th century.
UUID
1c7da3d6-e291-4493-af7d-c9479bb5930e
