inuguaq- “small wooden doll” (Yup’ik); irniaruaq- “pretend person, doll” (Yup’ik)

13 cm long x 8 cm wide
Rabbit skin, caribou skin, and squirrel skin, carved wood 

Qissayaarmiut ("Kassianamute"), Alaska (Togiak River) (Yup’ik), c. 1886
Collector: J. Applegate (and John W. Clark as indicated in Smithsonian records)

Museum ID number: APP.C5.clah.4605

Dolls were among some of the most common toys for young girls. Typically, they were carved by their fathers and came in many shapes, sizes, and materials with various clothing and adornments. They also had accessories like miniature dishes or mouse-skin blankets. The realistic outdoor animal fur clothing seen on this doll was very common. Clothed dolls often had a piece of hard material, such as wood or ivory, only in the upper half of the body, with the bottom half made of  skin or fur – in this doll’s case, the hard upper half is made of wood. Dolls represented more than just toys. During the winter, girls were not allowed to take their dolls outside because it was believed that this would bring dangerous, long-lasting storms. Dolls were also symbols of a girl’s future life as a woman. When girls became physically mature, they ceremonially passed down their dolls to younger girls in their community in a “Putting Away the Doll” feast, marking their new adult roles within the community and their ability to have children.

Dr. Rosemary Ahtuangaruak has provided additional context on this particular item's spiritual importance. She feels there may have been conflict when the doll was obtained, based a negative energy coming from the item. She suggests the doll may have been used as a shaman’s item.