The collection consists of thirty-four (34) items, including thirty-two (32) maps of the Baffin Island coast drawn by unidentified Inuit informants and annotated by Franz Boas; and two (2) numbered lists of place names by Boas. Most of the maps are not identified as to the precise area they represent except by Inuit place names. Other notes on the maps include a short text in an Inuit language and some notes in German and English; most of these notes are illegible because Boas used a shorthand system of his own in writing many of them. Moreover, his handwriting is very difficult to read even when not abbreviated. Many of the maps consist of two or more sheets of paper that were glued together and contain notes and drawings on both sides.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Arrangement:
The items in the collection were numbered 1-32 when cataloged by the United States National Museum (USNM). This order has been maintained when possible. Several numbers are now missing from the series, and a few items do not have numbers. Unnumbered items appear at the end of the collection.
Biographical Note:
Franz Boas (1858-1942) was a German-American anthropologist and pioneer of modern anthropological practice. He studied physics and geography at the universities at Heidelberg and Bonn before completing a doctoral program in physical geography at Kiel in 1881. After graduation, he joined an expedition of Baffin Island (1883-1884), which influenced his decision to focus on cultural tradition rather than biological and physical influences. In the summer of 1883 Boas traveled from Germany to Cumberland Sound, Baffin Island, aboard the sailing vessel Germania whose main objective was to evacuate the personnel of the German station of the First International Polar Year from Kingua Fjord. Over the winter of 1883–1884 Boas confined himself to Cumberland Sound and in the spring and summer of 1884, he crossed the Cumberland Peninsula and visited numerous Inuit communities along the Davis Strait coast.
In 1885, Boas emigrated to the United States, where he took an editorial position with the journal Science and started what would become his most famous ethnographic project, working among the Kwakiutl (Kwakwaka'wakw) Indians, in 1886. Boas spent three years teaching at Clark University in Massachusetts, then took an appointment at the Field Museum in Chicago in 1892. Boas then moved to New York, where he joined the American Museum of Natural History (1895-1905) and began teaching at Columbia University in 1896. For 37 years, Boas established himself as an academic and mentored numerous future influential anthropologists, including Margaret Mead, Alfred Kroeber, Edward Sapir, and Zora Neale Hurston. He also served as one of the founders of both the American Anthropological Association and the International Journal of American Linguistics.
Local Numbers:
NAA MS 169270
USNM Accession 29060
Publication Note:
Some of the maps were reproduced in:
Boas, Franz. Baffin-Land: Geographische Ergebnisse einer in den Jahren 1883 und 1884 ausgeführten Forschungsreise. Gotha: Justus Perthes, 1885.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Genre/Form:
Drawings
Maps
Citation:
Maps of parts of Baffin Island collected by Franz Boas (MS 169270), National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
The collection consists of eleven (11) drawings by Inuit artists collected by Ludwig Kumlien on the Howgate Polar Expedition. The drawings depict animals and daily activities, including hunting.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Biographical Note:
Aaron Ludwig Kumlien (1853–1902) was an American ornithologist. He was a member of the Howgate Polar Expedition (1877-1878) and collected ethnological, zoological, botanical, and other specimens for the United States National Museum.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Genre/Form:
Works of art
Drawings
Citation:
Inuit drawings collected by Ludwig Kumlien (MS 87819), National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Group of men (Baffinland Inuit) butchering a walrus during a walrus hunt near Padloping, Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Baffinland Inuit men flensing a Beluga whale on the dock while men from the U.S. Air Force Weather Station watch, Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Four girls (Baffinland Inuit) standing in front of a dwelling on Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Portrait of Joanasic lqalik "Ikalee" (Baffinland Inuit), Chief, at the U.S. Air Force Weather Station Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Man (Baffinland Inuit) with rifle, wind shield and seal catch at Pangnirtung, Baffin Island, Canada. Photographer unknown.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Baffinland Inuit dwelling with family standing out front on Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Three young women outdoors, Louis (Baffinland Inuit), Julie (Baffinland Inuit) the Chief's adopted daughter, and Lia (Baffinland Inuit) on Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Outdoor group portrait (Baffinland Inuit) Christmas morning after church on Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Group of young women (Baffinland Inuit) eating a meal on Christmas Day at the U.S. Air Force Weather Station. Padloping Island, Canada. Suzie (Baffinland Inuit) the Chief's wife is in the corner and Liz (Baffinland Inuit) is in the middle.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Group of young women (Baffinland Inuit) eating a meal on Christmas Day at the U.S. Air Force Weather Station. Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Four boys (Baffinland Inuit), Jacoby, Moosheshee, Mooshie and Snafu, standing at the front door to the barracks at the U.S. Air Force Weather Station Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Baffinland Inuit men flensing a Beluga whale on the dock while men from the U.S. Air Force Weather Station watch, Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Group of men (Baffinland Inuit) walrus hunting on outboard powered dories near Padloping, Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Close up of Baffinland Inuit men flensing a Beluga whale on the dock while men from the U.S. Air Force Weather Station watch, Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Young women Louis (Baffinland Inuit) and Lia (Baffinland Inuit) digging coal on Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Three young women outdoors, Louis (Baffinland Inuit), Julie (Baffinland Inuit) the Chief's adopted daughter, and Lia (Baffinland Inuit) on Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Woman (Baffinland Inuit) breastfeeding her baby on Christmas Day at the U.S. Air Force Weather Station. Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Close up of Baffinland Inuit men flensing a Beluga whale on the dock while men from the U.S. Air Force Weather Station watch, Padloping Island, Canada.
Collection Restrictions:
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited users to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not changed, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian.
Collection Citation:
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Warren Buxton photograph collection, Box and Folder Number; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
