Ethnological results of the Point Barrow expedition: Ninth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1887-1888, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1892, pages 3-442Murdoch, John
History
Ethnological results of the Point Barrow expedition: Ninth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1887-1888, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1892, pages 3-442
Murdoch, John
Eskimos -- Alaska -- Barrow, Point, Region
_Bow cases and quivers._--The bow and arrows were carried in a bow
case and quiver of black sealskin, tied together side by side and
slung across the back in the same manner as the gun holster already
described. We obtained one case and quiver which belong with the bow
and arrows (No. 25, from Nuwŭk) and a single quiver with the bow and
arrows (No. 234, from Sidaru.) The case, No. 89245 [25], Fig. 190_a_
(pizĭ´ksĭzax), is of such a shape that the bow can be carried in it
strung and ready for use. It is made by folding lengthwise a piece of
black sealskin with the flesh side in and sewing up one side “over and
over” from the outside. The bag is wide enough--6 inches at the widest
part--to allow the bow to slip in easily when strung, and the small
end is bent up into the shape of the end of the bow. Along the folded
edge are three round holes about 10 inches apart, through which a
round stick was formerly thrust, coming out from the inside through
the first hole, in through the second and out through the third again.
This served to hold the case in shape when the bow was withdrawn, and
to its ends were fastened the thong for slinging it across the
shoulders. It was gone from the specimen before we obtained it.
[Illustration: FIG. 190.--Bow case and quivers.]
The quiver (No. 89240-1 [25], Fig. 190_b_) is a long, straight bag of
the same material, open at one end, with a seam down one side, and the
edge of the mouth opposite to the seam forming a rounded flap 2 inches
long. The other end is closed by an elliptical cap of white tanned
seal skin, turned up about 2 inches all round, and crimped round the
ends like a boot sole. Its extreme length is 30 inches, and its
circumference 1 foot. Inside along the seam is a roughly rounded rod
of wood about ½ inch in diameter, with one end, which is pointed,
projecting about 1½ inches through a hole in the bottom, and the other
projecting about 1 inch beyond the mouth, where it is secured by a bit
of thong knotted through a couple of small holes in the bag close to
the edge and passing round a notch on the stick. The stick serves to
stiffen the quiver when there are no arrows in it. A bit of thong is
knotted round the middle, one end being hitched into a loop on the
other, for tightening up the quiver and confining the arrows.
The quiver from Sidaru (No. 72788 [234] Fig. 190_c_) is like the
preceding, but larger at the bottom than at the mouth. The latter is
8½ inches in circumference and the former 12¾, and the seam is left
open for about 7½ inches from the mouth to facilitate getting at the
arrows. The stiffening rod is made of pine, and does not project
through the bottom or reach the edge of the mouth. It is held in by
two pieces of thong about 10 inches long, which also serve to fasten
it to the bow case. This quiver is nearly new.
[Illustration: FIG. 191.--Quiver rod. 1/3]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account