ARCHEOLOGY AND ECOLOGY OF ALASKA — SOLECKI 487 



portant source of food to the inland Eskimos, to judge from the 

 amount of caribou-bone debris. 



Although Point Hope with its rich coastal Eskimo culture, called 

 by Larson and Rainey (1948) the Ipiutak culture, lay only about 80 

 miles to the west of the Kukpowruk River, no trace of recognizable 

 Ipiutak material was discovered in the entire survey. 



The third archeological phase represented on the north slope is that 

 of the historic inland Nunatagmiut Eskimo, or the Western Inland 

 Eskimo (Solecki, 1950a). This was also a culture dependent largely 

 upon caribou as the main economy. The Western Inland Eskimo 

 piiase seems to have been carried on directly from the prehistoric 

 inland Eskimo. A hunting camp found in the foothills province 

 yielded good samples of aboriginal stone work and some historic-con- 

 tact data, which ties in the prehistoric with the historic level. The 

 people made good use of hunting blinds or windbreaks constructed of 

 stone on the hills. There was also evidence of deadfall traps — 

 propped-up aifairs of stones that fell upon small animals when a 

 key stick was disturbed. One small village of eight houses was found 

 on a riverside terrace nbout 35 miles inland from the coast, containing 

 much evidence of historic contact material. The houses, represented 

 by small rectangular enclosures of turf, measuring on the average 

 about 9 by 14 feet, had a short side entrance to the south and a central 

 fireplace lined with stone slabs. None of the houses were of the 

 deep subterranean type. Signs of ax and saw cuts were found on the 

 timbers and caribou bones. From the bone remains it seems that 

 every part of the caribou was brought to camp. The antlers were 

 neatly cut off with metal saws, and more than one caribou skull had 

 been carefully sawed at the top, giving access to the brain case. 

 Since it seems that the natives were in the habit of consuming the 

 whole animal, it is likely that the brains were also utilized. Sled 

 runners of whalebone were found — items thus far lacking in the pre- 

 historic culture of the same region. 



One historic villaffe of the coastal Eskimo type was discovered near 

 the mouth of the Kukpowruk River. This village, containing 29 

 structural features, was of late date, possibly as recent as 50 years ago, 

 judged from the kind of historic-contact goods present. There were 

 19 houses ranged along the river bank with sunken entrance tunnels. 

 Tlie central fireplace was absent. All the bones and antlers of caribou 

 were metal-saw cut, and the skulls were neatly uncapped. Whale 

 vertebrae were found on the surface of the site. One item that seemed 

 to be out of place was an old sewing-machine head. Evidence point- 

 ing to the fact that these departed people had not forgotten their stone- 

 working industry was attested by the finding of flint chips on the 



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