Spear Rest

Item number E7430-0 from the National Museum of Natural History.

Public

Item Records

This page shows all the information we have about this item. Both the institution that physically holds this item, and RRN members have contributed the knowledge on this page. You’re looking at the item record provided by the holding institution. If you scroll further down the page, you’ll see the information from RRN members, and can share your own knowledge too.

The RRN processes the information it receives from each institution to make it more readable and easier to search. If you’re doing in-depth research on this item, be sure to take a look at the Data Source tab to see the information exactly as it was provided by the institution.

These records are easy to share because each has a unique web address. You can copy and paste the location from your browser’s address bar into an email, word document, or chat message to share this item with others.

Data
Data Source

This information was automatically generated from data provided by National Museum of Natural History. It has been standardized to aid in finding and grouping information within the RRN. Accuracy and meaning should be verified from the Data Source tab.

Notes

Source of the information below: Inuvialuit Pitqusiit Inuuniarutait: Inuvialuit Living History, The MacFarlane Collection website, by the Inuvialuit Cultural Resource Centre (ICRC), Inuvik, N.W.T., Canada (website credits here http://www.inuvialuitlivinghistory.ca/posts/12 ), entry on this artifact http://www.inuvialuitlivinghistory.ca/items/255 , retrieved 1-27-2020: Lance holder for the deck of a kayak, made from whale bone. It consists of a centre piece shaped to fit against the inverted 'V' shape of the deck of a kayak, with smaller pieces attached at each end with two iron rivets. The faces of the centre and end pieces are cut aslant where they join so that the end pieces extend inwards and upwards at a shallow angle. A piece of babiche connects the inner part of the end pieces to the centre piece by passing through holes drilled in each piece, and then wrapping around itself. A hole drilled through the joints at each end would have been used for mounting the holder to the kayak. One face of the centre piece has incised lines running from each mounting hole almost to the midpoint. More information here: http://www.inuvialuitlivinghistory.ca/item_types/33: Holders and rests were lashed to the decks of kayaks forward of the cockpit to keep lances and harpoons secure but ready when needed. Lance holders, such as the one illustrated here, were attached close to the bow. The tip of a lance or harpoon would be inserted into one of the triangular openings, and the opposite end of the shaft would sit against a rest that was fastened to the kayak deck close to the cockpit.