In 1879, the Cincinnati publisher Charles Francis Hall told the interested reader of his monography, Narrative of the Second Arctic Expedition Made by Charles F. Hall, a most dramatic story. He heard it while searching for the third Franklin expedition in the North of the Canadian Arctic, today called Nunavut. With his Inuk translator, Taqulittuq, he interviewed Ook-bar-loo, an Aivilingmiut woman, who told him the story of Ad-lark and how she found a pocket watch:
Years later, one can just imagine how Ad-lark told Ookbarloo the story, showing her the watch. While the horror of the story unfolded, the two women must have stood closely together, maybe even touched each other and taking a close look at this very small object that once upon a time belonged to an English man.
Most remarkably, Ad-lark had heard stories about the white men and their pocket watches, even before she found the camp. On one of her journeys, she met other Netsilingmiut, who already possessed pocket watches and watch chains. So, when she found the dead man, she knew immediately what kind of object was beneath his frozen garments. Carefully not touching his face, she removed the ice and lifted the man out of his icy bed. She took the pocket watch and kept it intact. At the time of her discovery, she did not know that the man belonged to the dearly missed Franklin expedition, that had left in 1845 England in search for the North-West passage. She would learn their story later, probably in 1854 when Dr. John Rae from the Hudson Bay Company searched for Franklin and his men. Dr. John Rae brought back some pocket watch fragments, of which I examined ten in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.
"The body of this man was lying on one side, and was half imbedded in solid ice from head to feet. The way the chain was about the neck and running down one side of the body indicated that the watch was beneath it; and therefore, to get at the watch, she found a difficult and disagreeable task before her.[...] She was very careful not to touch any part of the body while pounding with the sharp stone. At last, after having pounded away the ice from around and under the body, her husband helped her to lift it out of its icy beds. Still she was troubled to get the watch from the frozen garments with which the body was completely dressed. Finally, the watch and key and chain were obtained entire; and the woman now keeps them very choice, in commemoration of the terrible feelings she had when getting them from the dead Kob-lu-na, whom she dug out of the ice with nothing but a heavy, sharp stone.” (For the full testimony, follow the link.)
Years later, one can just imagine how Ad-lark told Ookbarloo the story, showing her the watch. While the horror of the story unfolded, the two women must have stood closely together, maybe even touched each other and taking a close look at this very small object that once upon a time belonged to an English man.
Most remarkably, Ad-lark had heard stories about the white men and their pocket watches, even before she found the camp. On one of her journeys, she met other Netsilingmiut, who already possessed pocket watches and watch chains. So, when she found the dead man, she knew immediately what kind of object was beneath his frozen garments. Carefully not touching his face, she removed the ice and lifted the man out of his icy bed. She took the pocket watch and kept it intact. At the time of her discovery, she did not know that the man belonged to the dearly missed Franklin expedition, that had left in 1845 England in search for the North-West passage. She would learn their story later, probably in 1854 when Dr. John Rae from the Hudson Bay Company searched for Franklin and his men. Dr. John Rae brought back some pocket watch fragments, of which I examined ten in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.
Pocket Watch Fragments AAA2067 – AAA2076, National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, photographed by Julia
Strobel, 5. February 2020. Published with the permission of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.
The mystery surrounding the Franklin expedition, as well as the objects the men carried, changed the life of the Netsilingmiut drastically. The Inuit used the materials and the objects for their own use: Knives became ulu`s, buttons were attached to outer coats and one of the most central persons in the search for Franklin`s man, Inookpooshejook, wore an officer`s hat band around his head. This very hat band was the reason why Dr. John Rae talked to him and gained so much information.
Additionally, more and more white searchers came to the Arctic, asking the Inuit for clues in the riddle, that puzzled so many Westerners, and exchanged goods for information. In Captain McClintock`s travel report, he wrote about how they saw a group of four Inuit hunters, of which one must have worn a naval button on his clothing that allowed the searchers to ask about Franklin`s men:
Objects like the hat band, the buttons and the pocket watches served as conversation starters for Inuit and the white searchers alike. Their stories were told and told again and through their stories, they became intrinsically linked with the geographical place of the camps and the dead men. Visually readable for Inuit and Westerners, these objects could be understood by both. In my opinion, the connection to a specific place and readability for both groups made them so adequate as a special kind of adornment.
Additionally, more and more white searchers came to the Arctic, asking the Inuit for clues in the riddle, that puzzled so many Westerners, and exchanged goods for information. In Captain McClintock`s travel report, he wrote about how they saw a group of four Inuit hunters, of which one must have worn a naval button on his clothing that allowed the searchers to ask about Franklin`s men:
"We gave them to understand that we were anxious to barter with them, and very cautiously approached the real object of our visit. A naval button upon one of their dresses afforded the opportunity; it came, they said, from some white people who were starved upon an island where there are salmon (that is, in a river);"
Objects like the hat band, the buttons and the pocket watches served as conversation starters for Inuit and the white searchers alike. Their stories were told and told again and through their stories, they became intrinsically linked with the geographical place of the camps and the dead men. Visually readable for Inuit and Westerners, these objects could be understood by both. In my opinion, the connection to a specific place and readability for both groups made them so adequate as a special kind of adornment.
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