118 G. Holm. 



An examination of the figures in fig. 43, which show the pro- 

 cess of transition, will reveal the way in which the ornament has 

 arisen: how a realistic representation of the body of the seal merges 

 little by little into conventional forms, and how this conventional 

 tailing-off of the hinder body of the seal is to be met with again 

 and again on implements of all kinds; thus the hinder body of the 

 seal develops into a tripartite figure, as on the ivorj^ knobs 

 of the harpoon shaft {g and h). This figure then represents 

 the seal's hind-paws with the tail between. Indeed it can even be 

 traced in the ornament on the harpoon wings (or feathers, m). The 

 transition figures point not only to the tripartite figure, but also to 

 a dipartite one, which is perhaps sometimes intended to represent 

 the whale's tail. The dipartition occurs very frequently in the im- 

 plements of the natives, thus, for instance, in the boot-sole creaser 

 (c), the buttons on the line-board, (d), earrings (e) and the handle 

 of a knife (i). All these ornaments are thus purely conven- 

 tional forms representing the hinder body of a seal. The 

 hinder body of the seal will likewise be encountered in many 

 other figures, as, for instance, on the handles and wooden parts of 

 all kinds of thongs, on implements for twisting sinew-thread, on 

 combs, buckles, holders of thimbles and sinew-thread, and in all pro- 

 bability the tripartite and dipartite division which is practically 

 invariably found on the native implements, is to be regarded as the 

 last link in the chain which, beginning with the natural repre- 

 sentation of seals, merges into conventional forms ^). 



Another form which the art of this people assumes are the 

 ornaments which ar.e carved in the shape of low-relief figures of 

 ivory and bone, and are fastened by means of bone nails on to 

 hunting implements (especially throwing-sticks), eye-shades, and 

 cooper's work. On some objects fully carved seals, narwhals, white 

 whales, bears, birds, fishes, men and kaiaks are to be found. (See 

 the drinking vessels fig. 281 and the brim fig. 46 no. 1). By far the 

 greater number of figures, however, are seals. The figures on water- 

 tubs, eye-shades, and brims show that the oval ornaments of most 

 frequent occurrence have been derived from the form of the seal. 



') Attention is drawn to H.ialmar Stolpe: "Studier öfver Amerikansk Ornamentik", 

 Stockholm 1896. Stolpe devotes some time to the ornamental art of the 

 Angmagsalik Eskimo, and concludes with these words: ''The ornamentation 

 of the Angmagsalik Kskimo thus deals with the raw material which is simplest 

 and nearest to hand, and it does not advance far in the development of it. As 

 it might be expected, it draws from a merely biomorph source, but has not 

 succeeded in passing beyond the very first stages of development. But it is 

 just this feature which makes it so highly instructive. It gives an excellent 

 picture of the childhood of the ornamental art". 



