1113 - Socket piece for Old Bering Sea harpoon for hunting sea-mammals - Sainsbury Centre Skip to content Sainsbury Centre Sainsbury Centre Visit What’s on Art & Objects Learning Stories Shop £0.000 View CartCheckout No products in the cart. Subtotal: £0.00 View CartCheckout Search: Looking for something in our Collection? Try searching all our artworks and objects Visit What’s on Art & Objects Learning Stories Shop You are here: Home Art & Objects Socket piece for Old Bering Sea harpoon for hunting sea-mammals 1/2 2/2 Socket piece for Old Bering Sea harpoon for hunting sea-mammals The sophisticated Old Bering Sea (OBS) harpoon consists of five parts: the counterweight-stabiliser (UAE 1107), the shaft, the socket piece (this object and also UAE 1123 and UAE1160), the foreshaft, and the harpoon head (UAE 467 and UAE1151). [1] The harpoon would have been thrown with an atlatl and the harpoon head would have been attached to an inflated seal bladder. The walrus ivory components of the harpoon were beautifully carved and in particular the counterweight-stabiliser, the socket piece, and the harpoon head were with striking with intricate designs that are telling of a certain period. Contemporary Yupiit have explained that there are different types of socket pieces for summer and winter hunting. This socket piece with a bifurcated bottom is of the ‘“lighter” summer harpoon’ whilst the “winter” harpoon is heavier and has a conical top (UAE 1160). [2] Almost in the centre of is a striking contrast of white “eye” on the chocolate brown coloured harpoon shaft. The neatly executed spurred lines, like small sharp tooth, accentuate a beautiful design. According to William Fitzhugh and Aron Crowell, this particular walrus ivory harpoon socket appears to a rare example of a transition between Old Bering Sea (500-1200 AD) and Punuk (800-1200 AD). [3] Perhaps it is made somewhere from 800-1000 AD, but further research is still needed to provide a more accurate date. [4] The open socket looks like a jaw of an animal (most frequently a polar bear) that would have swallowed the top of the shaft. [5] Yet, as Fitzhugh and Crowell point out, this particular example lacks the explicit “animal jaws at the socket end” that is common to OBS harpoon socket pieces. [6] Nonetheless, the symmetry between the two sides is marvellous and we can be amazed with the engravings and the grooves where the socket was attached to the foreshaft. We can also marvel thinking about the hunter who would have thrown the harpoon over a thousand years ago. Peter Loovers, February 2022 [1] Sergei A. Arutunov, ‘The Eskimo Harpoon’, In Gifts from the Ancestors: Ancient Ivories of the Bering Strait, ed. by William W. Fitzhugh, Julie Hollowell, and Aron L. Crowell (Princeton: Princeton University Art Museum, 2009), pp. 52-57 (p.53, fig. 1). [2] Sergei A. Arutunov, ‘The Eskimo Harpoon’, In Gifts from the Ancestors: Ancient Ivories of the Bering Strait, ed. by William W. Fitzhugh, Julie Hollowell, and Aron L. Crowell (Princeton: Princeton University Art Museum, 2009), pp. 52-57 (p.54). [3] William W. Fitzhugh and Aron L. Crowell, ‘Ancestors and Ivories: Ancient Art of Bering Strait’, In Gifts from the Ancestors: Ancient Ivories of the Bering Strait, ed. by William W. Fitzhugh, Julie Hollowell, and Aron L. Crowell (Princeton: Princeton University Art Museum, 2009), pp.18-41 (p.37, fig. 14) [4] See for dating, Owen K. Mason, ‘Focusing on the Coast’, in Arctic: culture and climate, ed. by Amber Lincoln, Jago Cooper, and Jan Peter Laurens Loovers (London: Thames & Hudson in collaboration with The British Museum, 2020). Pp. 187-196 [5] Sergei A. Arutunov, ‘The Eskimo Harpoon’, In Gifts from the Ancestors: Ancient Ivories of the Bering Strait, ed. by William W. Fitzhugh, Julie Hollowell, and Aron L. Crowell (Princeton: Princeton University Art Museum, 2009), pp. 52-57 (p.54). [6] William W. Fitzhugh and Aron L. Crowell, ‘Ancestors and Ivories: Ancient Art of Bering Strait’, In Gifts from the Ancestors: Ancient Ivories of the Bering Strait, ed. by William W. Fitzhugh, Julie Hollowell, and Aron L. Crowell (Princeton: Princeton University Art Museum, 2009), pp.18-41 (p.37, fig. 14) Read More Provenance Purchased by the Sainsbury Centre, University of East Anglia from Anthony Plowright on the advice of Robert Sainsbury in 1995 out of funds provided by the Robert and Lisa Sainsbury Charitable Trust. Save to my collection Download or share this object Tell us what you think On display Title/Description: Socket piece for Old Bering Sea harpoon for hunting sea-mammals Object Type: Implement Materials: Walrus ivory Technique: Carving Measurements: h. 197 x w. 38 x d. 27 mm Accession Number: 1113 Historic Period: transition between Old Bering Sea and Punuk (800-1000 AD) Production Place: Alaska, Bering Sea, North America Credit Line: Purchased with support from the Robert and Lisa Sainsbury Charitable Trust, 1995 More from our collection Untitled 2 Ink, Paper h 300 x w 210 mm (unframed) Head/mask with wide flat headband Greenstone h 8.8 x w 7 x d 2.3 cm Relief- six fold progression on two planes 1968 - 1969 Hardboard, Nylon, PMMA, Rubber, Stainless Steel, Wood h. 61.0 x w. 91.0 x d. 7.2 cm Trinket box h. 42 x w. 90 x d. 56 mm Find us University of East Anglia, Norfolk Road, Norwich NR4 7TJ T: 01603 593199 Contact Us Access Press Office Opening times Tuesday – Friday 9am-6pm (Exhibitions 10am-6pm) Saturday – Sunday 10am-5pm (Exhibitions 10am-5pm) Closed Mondays, including bank holidays About us Join & support Venue hire Touring exhibitions Ts&Cs / Policies Shop customer support Join us Sign-up to our newsletter > Become a member > Go to Top
