NELSON] ARTICLES OF USE AND ADORNMENT 59 



BELTS AND BELT BUTTONS 



Throughout the Eskimo country from the lower Kuskokwim to the 

 Arctic coast, a favorite waist belt worn by the women is made from the 

 incisors of reindeer. These are obtained by cutting oft' the tip of the 

 lower jaw, leaving sufficient bone to retain the teeth in their natural 

 position. These rows of teeth are sewed along a strap of rawhide, 

 one overlapping the next in scale-like succession, so that they form a 

 continuous series along its entire length. 



Some of these belts have a double row of such teeth, and as each set 

 represents a reindeer, it is evident that a long period of hunting is 

 necessary ere a sufiicient number can be accumulated. 



In addition to the belts made of reindeer incisors, they have others 

 made by fastening along the surface of a strap of tanned sealskin a 

 series of smooth brass buttons in close succession, or they ornament 

 the entire length of the outer surface of the belt with circles and lines 

 of beads arranged according to the fancy of the wearer. 



When worn, the belts are brought loosely around the waist and held 

 in place by a toggle or button, which is attached to the belt by a short 

 cord tied through a hole pierced in the button for the purpose. These 

 cords are attached to the belt about a foot or fifteen inches from the 

 ends, so that the latter hang down in front of the hips on each side. 



The belt buttons are passed through a cord loop on the opposite side 

 of the belt and thus hold it in place. They are made of ivory, bone, or 

 reindeer horn, and have very great variety of form. Some are merely 

 rounded knobs, or are made from the tooth of a bear or walrus pierced 

 in the middle, while others are in the form of hooks. Flat button- 

 shape carvings, with squared, circular, or oval outlines are common, 

 but most numerous of all are those made in the forms of seals, walrus, 

 birds, and men. 



A number of these objects have been illustrated (plate xxvii) in 

 order to show their great variety and to demonstrate the skill and 

 ingenuity in carving which these people possess. 



The following notes describe the character of those figured, which 

 are made of ivory except where other substances are indicated. 



The specimen from Cape Nome, illustrated in plate xxvii, 1; is a 

 good exami)le of this style of fastener. A similar object, shown in 

 figure 2 of the same plate, is from Chalitmut; this is a fragment of 

 deerhorn, an inch and three-quarters long and three-quarters of an 

 inch in diameter, smoothly rounded, and pierced with a central hole. 

 Another (figure 4), from Kotzebue sound, consists of a long, quadran- 

 gular piece of walrus ivory an inch and a half long by half an inch in 

 width, with a narrow, raised ear or projection on the middle of the 

 inner surface, which is pierced lengthwise for the passage of a cord; 

 the front is marked with incised lines. Figure 5 illustrates a specimen 

 from Chalitmut, which is somewhat similar in shape to the last, 



