Dog Sled

Toys are meant not only for entertainment, but also for learning skills. Dogsleds were an essential part of Inuit culture as the only means of long distance winter travel before the snowmobile.

used by children

Sled (a) made from the lower jaw bones of a caribou, with teeth intact. There is a cross-bar lashed onto the back of the sled below the handles. The rawhide traces are tied onto the front of the sled and have worn through so that the team is not connected. Each member of the 'dog' team (c-e) is represented by a uncarved humerus seal bone wearing a rawhide harness with a long strip attached. The whip (b) is made of thin pieces of carved bone with a long rawhide strip lashed with thread.