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• 1 2019-11-25T21:03:03+00:00 Walrus 11 A description of Yup'ik traditions of walrus hunting and crafting walrus products vistag 2020-01-23T16:37:48+00:00 In Spring, Walrus return to the warm coastal waters of the Bering Sea. Hunters go out in kayaks with tegutet (large harpoons), which are essential tools, since sea mammals are heavy and sink quickly. Yup'ik elder Frank Andrew described the tegutet as follows:
  
  Sea mammals that are heavy sink easily. If he doesn't have one of these retrieving hooks, he will not take it. But if he has one, they won't sink. These were their retrieving tools. They jab this into the body of the animal and take it, not letting it sink. That is why they are called tegutet, [from tegu-, "to take in hand"].
  
  Successful hunters bring walrus home to use their meat, oil, skin, and ivory. The meat is eaten both dried and boiled, and can be stored for winter use. The skin is scraped off of the carcass and then cleaned by soaking in aged urine, a natural cleansing agent. While smaller sea mammals, such as seals, can be brought back to the home to be skinned and butchered by women, the walrus's size prevents it from being brought home whole. Thus, the hunters must butcher the walrus on ice. Frank Andrew recalls:
  
  They cut them open and removed the skin along with the fat. They butchered the walrus they weren't going to use for boat coverings, cutting the meat along with its skin. They made small pieces that were easy to handle and to put inside the kayak. 
  
  Walrus skins are processed in the summer, since skins dried in the winter are more porous. The skins are used to make boot soles, kayak skins, and boat coverings. Walrus skin is thick, and must be thinned by removing the inside layer. They are then stretched to dry. Neva Rivers describes the skin treatment process, showing that it is a communal effort. Though she talks about bearded seal skin, the process is similar with walrus:
  
  That person who was going to make a boat would give the children a bearded-seal skin with handles [cut on the edge for drying]. They let them play with their skin before they sewed it so it could soften.
  
  They let a person get on [the skin]. They would go around and sing. The one [on the skin] would be on his knees and would be bouncing down there. When the song was complete, they finally pulled [the skin], and he would jump. They would do it even harder, and he would jump even higher.
  
  Soon he would stand on his feet when he landed. When they suddenly pulled it, he would go even higher. They wouldn't miss when they played like that. Finally, when he was going to miss he would land on soft ground where he wouldn't get hurt.
  
  Walrus tusks are used to make tools, such as aangruyak (heavy spear), and also decorative objects and toys.  
  
  Walrus hunting and processing is a community event that represents as plentiful harvest and means a well-stocked winter. Therefore it is greatly celebrated, and while practiced less now, it is fondly remembered by many elders.
  
  (Fienup-Riordan, 2007)