What do you think these are used for?

Who made them? What are they made of?

These are harpoon points, used to hunt fish and sea mammals for food. They are fixed to the ends of poles or spears, and usually are both fastened to the end and secured with a line, so that the point may be retrieved after use.

All of these harpoon points were made by Inuit people from Alaska. They were made from bone, probably taken from animals killed with other harpoons. (Wild!) This collection of artifacts was donated to the Karshner collections in 1943.

For more information, visit:

• This artifact in the Karshner Digital Collections
• Artifact Worksheets you can use in your classroom or for homeschool
• Inuit Harpoon Use
• Inuit Peoples for Kids!
• The Dorset and Thule Peoples
• Arctic Peoples