JESUP NORTH PACIFIC PUBIICATIONS 59 



the region bear the crest figures of the house owner and his wife, 

 while others represent incidents in myths. Grave posts, canoes 

 and household utensils bear similar representations, and crests 

 are used by the people as designs in tattooing their bodies. The 

 secret societies of the tribes are owned by various families and 

 the more important were introduced from the south. The 

 volume contains a number of interesting maps compiled by Dr. 

 Charles F. Newcombe on which the native names of places and 

 the locations of towns have been recorded. 



Volume VI, Part i. The Koryak. By Waldemar Jochelson. 



The subjects treated in this volume are the religion and the 

 mythology of one of the most important of the tribes living in 

 extreme eastern Siberia. The principal Koryak deity is Big- 

 Raven, who is looked upon as the founder of the world and the 

 creator of its inhabitants. He is appealed to through prayers, 

 sacrifices and incantations. The Koryak have besides a vague 

 conception of a supreme being who sent Big-Raven to the earth 

 to establish order. This supreme being does not seem to inter- 

 fere in detail with the affairs of man, but as long as he looks down 

 upon the earth there is abundance and health, whereas disorder 

 reigns as soon as he turns away. 



Malevolent spirits are very numerous, and there are super- 

 natural beings which are rulers of various parts of the country. 

 The Koryak, therefore, make extensive use of charms repre- 

 senting supernatural beings for protection against spirits. Sac- 

 rifices both bloody and bloodless are offered to the supernatural 

 beings. The most important of these sacrifices are of reindeer 

 and dogs, and Mr. Jochelson describes in detail the peculiar 

 custom of attaching the bodies of dogs to poles or to the trees 

 which represent the village guardians. Shamanism too plays an 

 important part in the life of the Koryak. Professional shamans 

 who treat the sick are employed in the tribe in addition to the 

 particular famiily shamans. 



Among the Maritime Koryak elaborate festivals are held re- 

 lating to whale hunts, while among the Reindeer Koryak the 

 most important ceremonials pertain to the herd of reindeer. The 

 burial customs of the people are complex and include cremation. 



The mythology of the tribe is remarkably uniform and deals 



