NAVIGATION

To the Eskimo, nets are a critical element of subsistence technology. The most important is the gill net used for catching salmon and other fish. Similar nets are used in catching seals and beluga. These are made of thick rawhide and have mesh as large as a man’s head. Like fish, the seals become entangled in the mesh where they are held under water by large sinkers or weights on the bottom of the net, such as this, until they drown. Large numbers of seals were caught in this way in the open water season and also beneath the ice in winter.