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| Greenland Handicrafts. Some of
the most popular souvenirs of Greenland are various figures, people and
animals carved in walrus ivory, reindeer antlers or soapstone, which is
found in many Greenland fjords.Through the ages, such things as cooking
utensils and oil lamps (lamps which burn oil obtained from whale blubber)
have been made from stone, but today it is mostly used for handicrafts.
Also much sought after are tupilak, originally a type of bad luck charm against enemies, which people made using parts of skeletons of various animals, sewn into a skin and lined with peat. Life was conjured into it and it was then placed in the kayak of the person you wished dead, or it was placed in a watercourse or the sea. You then simply waited for it to seek out its victim and kill it. Unfortunately, if the symbolism was not accurate, or if the victim had stronger magical powers, then the tupilak returned against the person who made it. So performing magic with a tupilak was something which had to be handled with a great deal of care. The first craft tupilak were carved around 1880. First in wood, but later in bone, tooth or soapstone. The grotesque appearance of the tupilak has been an inspiration to many Greenland artists, some of whom are also known for producing minute models of hunting equipment, dog sleds and umiaq (women' s boats). - article courtesy Greenland Tourism -
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Dogseal-Tupilak,
driftwood,
Tasiilaaq, East Greenland. Private collection
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Leather dolls, National
costume, South Greenland.
Private collection
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| Woman
riding
a harpuned narwhale, driftwood, East Greenland.
Pricate collection |
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Tupilak,
drifwood with teeth made of bone.Tasiilaaq, East Greenland
Private collection |
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Dogsled, bone and
walrus tusk ivory, Qaanaq/Thule.
Private collection |
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Loon
carving
by late Therkild Josefsen, Nuuk.
Private collection |
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