Walrus Ashtray

Item number 3202/4 a-b from the MOA: University of British Columbia.

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 MOA: University of British Columbia. 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.

Description

Carved black stone walrus. Animal lays on belly, with front flippers supporting the raised head and neck. Face is turned to the side and has carved neck wrinkles, as well as eyes, nostrils, mouth and whisker follicles on the face. Two ivory tusks emerge from the mouth (one of which is removable--part ‘b’). Into the animal’s back is carved a shallow ashtray with four half circle hollows around the edge.

Narrative

Gigliotti was stationed in Frobisher Bay (now Iqaliut) as a meteorologist from 1952-54. During this period he acquired a small collection of Inuit objects from two Inuit men who were allowed to come out to the station. He was told the objects were from Cape Dorset.