"Growing Goodness": An Alaska Native Collection at Oberlin College

Ladle




 

Ipuun - “ladle” (Yup’ik) 
Handle: 19 cm long x 3.1 cm wide x 1.5-2.2 cm thick; Bowl: 21.8 cm long (from end of groove to tip) x 10 cm wide x 0.55 cm thick
Wood

Yukon River, Alaska (Deg Hi’tan/Deg Xinag), c. 1869
Collector: W. H. Dall

Museum ID number: DAL.C1.a.0768

Utensils like this ladle were usually carved by male Elders, often from driftwood that was collected during the summer. Each ladle has its own unique decorative and symbolic marking, likely indicating both the owner and a broader reflection of the image’s relationship to the natural world. The bowl of the ladle has a traditional design of either a whale or a fish. The parallel black lines encircling the bowl may serve as female symbols, or they also may be the final encircling lines or grooves the artist paints on an object in order to imbue it with spiritual life and enable it to become a part of all other worldly things. Another possibility is that the black lines on the bowl and handle `were added later to signify a loss of respect or lack of trust for the original owners. This ladle was made by a skilled worker to be thick and durable so that it may last for many years, being passed down from generation to generation. The ladle shows few obvious signs of use, either due to the lack of respect for its original owners or the possibility that it became a tourist item (if this is the case, the additional markings could have been added later to make the item look more “native”).
 

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