Tools

Women used tools perfectly suited to their environment and their tasks, and designed for their needs. Made from resources available on the land, these tools could be used for the long and demanding work of tanning skins and making clothes for the family. They could also provide light and heat for shelters made of snow or skins.

Objects to discover

Objects to discover

Oil lamp made of darkened rock in an irregular semi-circular shape, with a central hollow. The lamp surface shows traces of wear and rough patches.

Oil lamps (qulliq and alliq)

An oil lamp, called a qulliq, was indispensable to daily Inuit life.

Scraper composed of a handle and a blade. The handle is carved and wooden, rectangular in shape, and slightly rounded on its sides. The blade is hollow and carved from white bone, with a flared lengthwise opening toward its end.

Scraper (sakuut)

This scraper, called a sakuut, has a wooden handle and a blade made from the femur of a...

Scraper carved from gray rock. It is long and curved in shape, shows carving lines on its surface, and has slight visible wear on its rounded edges.

Scraper

Made from soapstone, this scraper was used to prepare caribou skins.

View of several sewing tools arranged in a circle: a roughout leather pouch made from the skin of a common murre; a half-moon-shaped knife with a rusted blade; a long, curved bone scraper; three small leather pieces; and a beige braided leather string.

Sewing kit

The kit is composed of several sewing tools used by women and kept in a pouch made from the skin...

Knife, seen from the front, with a large semi-circular metal blade. The blade is attached to a dark wooden handle by a supporting piece held in place by two metal rivets.

Knife (ulu)

An ulu is a woman's knife. It has a handle and a crescent- or half-moon-shaped blade, which is...