Inuvialuit and the Prince of Wales Collection
The Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories was established in 1982 to house and display belongings (artifacts) from all cultures and regions of the Northwest Territories. These items, acquired through donation and purchase, include photographs, archival maps and documents, belongings, and their associated records. The Northern Heritage Centre is also the repository for belongings collected during archaeological work conducted in the Northwest Territories.
The Northern Heritage Centre cares for many collections from the Inuvialuit Settlement Region. These range from 3,000-year-old belongings to traditional Inuvialuit clothing and tools, to contemporary art pieces. Many of the collections are digitally accessible (www.pwnhc.ca), and Inuvialuit are welcome to interact with their cultural belongings at the Northern Heritage Centre. In 2015, Inuvialuit Elders and youth from Ikaahuk were sponsored by the Ikaahuk Archaeology Project to visit the Centre. They spent time with and shared their knowledge of belongings from Banks Island and other parts of the Inuvialuit Settlement Region.
The Northern Heritage Centre also supports other community-based projects. One example is the Tuktuuyaqtuuq Traditional Clothing Project, which saw Inuvialuit seamstresses visit the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC in 2002. They studied and made patterns of centuries-old garments, some of which they re-created when they returned home. Several of their re-creations were donated by the seamstresses to the Northern Heritage Centre.
Paula Voudrach with a niksik (fish hook) she discovered at the Kuukpak archaeological site in 2007. Photo credit: Charles Arnold, 2007.
John Kudlak holds two pieces of a pitiksivialuk (bow) recovered from the Kuukpak archaeological site. Photo credit: Charles Arnold.
Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre curator Joanne Bird (left) shows Kate Inuktalik a 2500 year-old kamik (boot) that was discovered at the Lagoon archaeological site on Banks Island. Photo credit: Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre.
Roseanne Lennie examines part of a broken bottle from an early twentieth-century trapping camp on Banks Island during a visit to the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre. Photo credit: Lisa Hodgetts, 2015.
Roseanne Lennie (left) and Mariah Lucas examine archaeological artifacts from Banks Island during a visit to the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre in 2015. Photo credit: Lisa Hodgetts, 2015.
Alexis Lucas preparing scans of artifacts for making 3D models during a visit to the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre in 2015. Photo credit: Lisa Hodgetts, 2015.
Seamstresses in Tuktuuyaqtuuq tracing atigi (parka) pattern on caribou skin. The people in this photograph are (left to right): Freda Raddi, Sarah Mangelana, Catherine Mangelana, Elizabeth Drescher. They are transferring a pattern of a traditional caribou skin atigi they are re-creating that can be seen in the photograph in front of Freda. The original atigi is in the collections of the Smithsonian Institution. Photo credit: Charles Arnold/Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, 2002.
Belongings
A child's kamik (boot) discovered at the Lagoon archaeological site. The Lagoon archaeological site, located on Banks Island, was occupied about 2,500 years ago by Inuvialuit ancestors known as Sivullirmiu. Photo credit: Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre/982.50.480.
A group of artifacts discovered at the Nelson River archaeological site. The Nelson River archaeological site, located on Banks Island, was occupied about 1200 years ago by Inuvialuit ancestors known as Thule Inuit. Left to right: two naulikat (harpoon heads), a kunuuyaq (doll), a pendant or fish lure, a mitqutausiqpik (needle case) and a tigurliq (handle) for a drag line. Photo credit: Tessa Macintosh/Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre.
A pottery container found at the Pond archaeological site. An ancient clay pot that could have been used for dipping water. The Pond archaeological site, located near the mouth of Kuukpak (Mackenzie River) was occupied by Inuvialuit ancestors about 700 years ago. Photo credit: Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre/ 989.22_NhTs-2-733.
A niksik (fish hook) found at the 500 year-old Kuukpak archaeological site. The Kuukpak archaeological site, located near the mouth of Kuukpak (Mackenzie River) was occupied by Inuvialuit ancestors about 500 years ago. Photo credit: Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre/988.20_NiTs-1-594.
An iilayuan (comb) found at the 500 year-old Kuukpak archaeological site. The Kuukpak archaeological site, located near the mouth of Kuukpak (Mackenzie River) was occupied by Inuvialuit ancestors about 500 years ago. Photo credit: Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre/985.46_NiTs-1-184.
A seal retriever made by Thomas Umauq in the early 1900s. Photo credit: Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre/964.3.1.
A drum and drum stick made by Norman Felix in 2003. Photo credit: Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre/2003.3.1a,b.
