"UNIDENTIFIED ARTIST, Possibly INUPIAQ
Engraved Walrus Tusk, c. 1825-65
walrus tusk and ink, 16 x 2.5 x 0.25 in (40.6 x 6.3 x 0.6 cm)
unsigned.

Provenance
Rosebud Gallery, Berkeley, CA;
Acquired from the above by the present Important Private Collection, Toronto.

The sleek, curved lines of this tusk, which has been shaped to a mere quarter-inch thickness, provide an elegant canvas for the multiple scenes and figures depicted along the two groundlines. At first glance we observe several depictions of northern hunters and the animals they pursue, as well as scenes of boating and drumming and dancing. In the multiple scenes of hunting and hauling walruses, the red ochre of most of these subjects differentiates them from the caribou, seals, foxes, and other animals illustrated on the tusk, and adds a lovely touch of colour to the composition. Closer inspection of the images reveals hints of danger to the hunters themselves. Along one baseline we see a bear eating a human, the hapless victim’s legs splayed and kicking out from the bear's mouth. Nearby, the victim’s companion makes a swift exit. This remarkable object, created perhaps by a master drill bow engraver, is a masterpiece of its type.

References: For various engraved walrus tusks see the chapter by Dorothy Jean Ray in William Fitzhugh and Susan Kaplan, Inua: Spirit World of the Bering Sea Eskimo, (Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1982), p. 255-267. See also Dorothy Jean Ray, Eskimo Art: Tradition and Innovation in North Alaska, (Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1977), pp. 214-232."