192 Chr. Bendix Thostrup 



resulted in almost all the house-ruins investigated having not a bit 

 of wood in the structure of the roof. We see that the Eskimos have 

 been obliged to content themselves with stone for their buildings 

 and the genius displayed in their construction is often surprising. 

 The structure of the roof further was quite thin and light, and it is 

 probable that the snow — in addition to a thin layer of earth above 

 the roof-stones — has helped to keep the dwelling warm. The walls 

 were built of stones (turf was never used) very carefully set up 

 (fig. 1); nowhere however was there so much remaining that we 

 could find traces of the window opening. The side walls were often 

 not even, but bent outwards at the front part, so that a more or 

 less distinct side-room was formed (cf. fig. 1 and PI. II), in which 

 was found refuse from the meals and in the refuse often bro- 

 ken-off" points of w^eapons, broken kitchen utensils and such like. 

 In several cases also a small niche was found above the entrance 

 (fig. 33). The absence of wood was also apparent in the construc- 

 tion of the platforms. These as a rule were made entirely of gravel 

 but were covered usually with flat stones. The effect of the gravel 

 was that water and other dampness could not collect on the plat- 

 form but filtered through. At some places however they had to be 

 satisfied with earth instead of gravel. The side platforms have 

 been of the same height as the main platform. The floor likewise 

 was usually paved with flat stones; it sloped evenly down towards 

 the bottom of the house-passage. The passage was straight as a 

 rule, more rarely it had a bend. For the side- walls of the passage 

 large pieces of rock have been used; for the top, flat stones often 

 of considerable size and weight and much heavier than the roof- 

 stones of the house. 



Tent-rings.^ The tent-rings were of different form; oval, cir- 

 cular or square. 



The size of the edging stones was very variable in the different 

 tents,^ and they might be close together or at a distance from one 

 another. 



The meaning of the large stones in a tent-ring was, in my opi- 

 nion, that the tent was intended to stand at the same spot for a 

 long time or that the tent material has been more than usually 

 short in proportion to the size of the tent. 



» Cf. Pansch: p. бГ); Koldewey: I, pp. 595— 9«; Ryder: p. 301, 3(12 illustr. and 

 Amdrup 2: p. 328. - In speaking of large, ordinaiy or small stones in the 

 following descriptions of tent-rings, meat-depots etc. 1 mean respectively stones 

 a man can lift or thereabout, stones the size of the head and stones the size 

 of the fist or a little more. 



