Inuit Art - Swimming l - Unicorns of the Sea.
The Narwhal is one of the rarest whales known that lives in the Arctic. The origin of the name Narwhal is actually Dutch, which also comes from the Danish word Narvhal, meaning "corpse" in reference to its pale body color. The narwhal is strongly associated with sea ice, and lives entirely in Arctic waters.
The male narwhal is famous for the long ivory tusk that spirals counter-clockwise up to 9 feet forward from the head of adult males. During the Medieval times, Europeans thought of the tusk to be the horn of the legendary unicorn. Viking and other traders originally from the Northern regions, traded the tusks for gold as they supposedly had a lot of magic powers. Cups were made from the tusks as it was believed that they would destroy the effect of a poison that was slipped into a drink.
The Inuit also have a legend about how the narwhal and its tusk came to be. According to the story, a cruel woman was persuaded by her son to tie the end of a harpoon rope around her waist. When he threw the weapon and successfully struck a large whale—which he had deliberately aimed to hit—she was pulled into the ocean. There, in the dark depths, she became a narwhal and bore a tusk formed from her hair, which had become twisted around the rope.
Purchased in 1980 in Ikpiarjuk (Arctic Bay), Nunavut, this rudimentary piece is part of a collection accumulated over many years while flying land-use surveys throughout the Arctic for the federal government.
Authenticity: This unsigned sculpture comes with the "Igloo tag".
The Canadian government has registered the "Igloo" as a trademark. This tag certifies that the Inuit art sculpture you are purchasing was handmade by an Inuit artist of Canada.
The carving and base are of ancient whale bone. The narwhal is 8” long by 0.5” wide and the base is 5” long by 2” wide.
The total weight is 2.9 oz.
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