Assorted Inuit Fishing Implements

late 19th century

lot of 14, includes:

two partial harpoons, one with foreshaft carved into a polar bear head; blue glass bead eyes, lengths 33 inches and 30 inches

a bone harpoon foreshaft, length 6 inches

various arrows and bird points, lengths 10 - 16 inches

a harpoon point, length 6-1/4 inches

a wood netting tool, length 6-1/4 inches

This lot is located in Chicago.

Provenance
From the collection of Father Edward F. Sippel of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, inherited from his mother, Della (Beau) Sippel, daughter of John Louis BeauBeau’s wife died in 1895 shortly after the birth of their son, Johnny. The children, Della and the infant Johnny, were subsequently raised by relatives in Calvary, Wisconsin. During this period, Beau spent approximately thirteen years in Nome, Alaska, where he operated the Beau Mercantile during the gold rush era.In 1933, Della reclaimed her father’s remaining personal effects from his bankrupt estate, preserving a small group of artifacts and photographs related to his ventures in Alaska.