Ammassalik wooden maps
Encyclopedia
In the 1880s, Gustav Holm
led an expedition to the Ammassalik coast of eastern Greenland
, where he met several Inuit
communities who had had no prior direct contact with Europeans. He returned to Denmark with a set of three-dimensional wooden maps of the coast around 66°N 36°W, carved by a native of Umivik
named Kunit.
to Kangerdlugsuatsiak. Kunit returned on March 21 with another piece representing the peninsula between Sermiligak and Kangerdluarsikajik.
Upon Holm's return, the maps were deposited along with the rest of the collection at the National Museum of Denmark
in Copenhagen
. As of 1948 the maps were still in Copenhagen; copies were deposited in the Musée d'Ethnographie du Trocadéro
in Paris
. At some point the maps were transferred to the Greenland National Museum
in Nuuk
, which was established in the mid-1960s. write that the "only other known example" of such a map is a specimen at the Michigan State University
museum — item 896.7, 62154 — which is probably a copy of Kunit's work.
In 2000, Post Greenland
issued a stamp designed by Anne-Birthe Hove featuring the coastal map, as part of its "Greenland’s Cultural Heritage" series.
The Greenland National Museum loaned out the maps for a 2007-8 exhibition at the Field Museum of Natural History
in Chicago
entitled Maps: Finding Our Place in the World, which also traveled to the Walters Art Museum
in Baltimore
.
Gustav Frederik Holm
right|thumb|400px|Gustav Holm at [[Qaqortoq]], Greenland, in 1894, when he was captain of the steamer HvidbjørnenGustav Frederik Holm was a Danish naval officer and Arctic explorer, born at Copenhagen...
led an expedition to the Ammassalik coast of eastern Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
, where he met several Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
communities who had had no prior direct contact with Europeans. He returned to Denmark with a set of three-dimensional wooden maps of the coast around 66°N 36°W, carved by a native of Umivik
Umivik, Ammassalik
Umivik is an abandoned settlement at Ammassalik Fjord. As of the winter of 1884–5, 19 Inuit lived there in a single dwelling. The U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency classifies Umiviik/Umîvik as a ruin at , which is on the west side of Apusiaajik Island....
named Kunit.
History
Kunit approached Holm on February 8, 1885 and sold the maps representing the coast from SermiligakSermiligaaq
Sermiligaaq is a settlement in the Sermersooq municipality in southeastern Greenland. Its population is 222 as of 2010...
to Kangerdlugsuatsiak. Kunit returned on March 21 with another piece representing the peninsula between Sermiligak and Kangerdluarsikajik.
Upon Holm's return, the maps were deposited along with the rest of the collection at the National Museum of Denmark
National Museum of Denmark
The National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen is Denmark’s largest museum of cultural history, comprising the histories of Danish and foreign cultures, alike. The museum's main domicile is located a short distance from Strøget at the center of Copenhagen. It contains exhibits from around the world,...
in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
. As of 1948 the maps were still in Copenhagen; copies were deposited in the Musée d'Ethnographie du Trocadéro
Musée d'Ethnographie du Trocadéro
The Musée d'Ethnographie du Trocadéro was the first anthropological museum in Paris, founded in 1878...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. At some point the maps were transferred to the Greenland National Museum
Greenland National Museum
The Greenland National Museum is located in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. It was one of the first museums established in Greenland, inaugurated in the mid 1960s. The museum is affiliated with the Danish National Museum which has expanded its collections...
in Nuuk
Nuuk
Nuuk, is the capital of Greenland, the northernmost capital in North America and the largest city in Greenland. Located in the Nuup Kangerlua fjord, the city lies on the eastern shore of the Labrador Sea and on the west coast of Sermersooq. Nuuk is the largest cultural and economic center in...
, which was established in the mid-1960s. write that the "only other known example" of such a map is a specimen at the Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
museum — item 896.7, 62154 — which is probably a copy of Kunit's work.
In 2000, Post Greenland
Post Greenland
Post Greenland is the company responsible for postal service in Greenland. The company is wholly owned by Tele Greenland A/S, operating under Greenland Home Rule...
issued a stamp designed by Anne-Birthe Hove featuring the coastal map, as part of its "Greenland’s Cultural Heritage" series.
The Greenland National Museum loaned out the maps for a 2007-8 exhibition at the Field Museum of Natural History
Field Museum of Natural History
The Field Museum of Natural History is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It sits on Lake Shore Drive next to Lake Michigan, part of a scenic complex known as the Museum Campus Chicago...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
entitled Maps: Finding Our Place in the World, which also traveled to the Walters Art Museum
Walters Art Museum
The Walters Art Museum, located in Baltimore, Maryland's Mount Vernon neighborhood, is a public art museum founded in 1934. The museum's collection was amassed substantially by two men, William Thompson Walters , who began serious collecting when he moved to Paris at the outbreak of the American...
in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
.
Features
| Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sardlermiut, on the west side of which is the site of an old settlement | 66.21°N 35.53°W | ||
| 2 | Nepinerkit (from napavok), having the shape of a pyramid | 66.12°N 35.57°W | ||
| 3 | Ananak, having the site of an old settlement on the southwest point | 66.10°N 35.64°W | Others give the name Ananak to the cape on the mainland directly opposite, calling the island Kajartalik. | |
| 4 | Aputitek | Sølver's label is closer to the bottom part of the third island than it is to the fourth island. | ||
| 5 | Itivdlersuak | 66.01°N 35.76°W | Unidentified | |
| 6 | Kujutilik | 65.97°N 35.91°W | 66.01°N 35.76°W | |
| 7 | Sikivitik | 65.92°N 36.02°W | Unidentified | |
| A | Itivdlek, where there are remains of a house | 66.32°N 34.85°W | 66.30°N 35.47°W | Sølver identifies this feature with Cape Wandel. |
| B | Sierak, a small fjord, in which salmon are found | 66.32°N 35.22°W | 66.32°N 35.48°W | Sølver identifies this feature with the fjord Nigertusok, or possibly with the point of land at its elbow. |
| C | Sarkarmiut, where there are remains of a house | 66.27°N 35.19°W | 66.30°N 35.53°W | Sølver identifies this feature with Cape Japetus Steenstrup. |
| D | Kangerdlugsuatsiak, a fjord of such length that a kayak can not even in a whole day row from the mouth to the head of the fjord and back again | 66.25°N 35.35°W | 66.29°N 35.65°W | Sølver places this feature on the fjord marked Sarkarmiut in the map. Elkins places it farther inland. |
| E | Erserisek, a little fjord | 66.24°N 35.57°W | 66.23°N 35.62°W | Sølver and Elkins almost agree on this feature; Elkins places the label farther inland, while Sølver includes part of the Odesund. |
| F | Nutugkat, a little fjord with a creek at the bottom | 66.13°N 35.67°W | ||
| G | Merkeriak, kayak portage from Nutugkat to Erserisek along the bank of the creek, when the heavy ice blocks the headland between the two fjords | 66.21°N 35.77°W | ||
| H | Ikerasakitek, a bay in which the land ice goes straight out to the sea | |||
| I | Kangerajikajik, a cape | |||
| J | Kavdlunak, a bay into which runs a creek | |||
| K | Apusinek, a long stretch where the land ice passes out into the sea. | |||
| L | Tatorisik | |||
| M | Iliartalik, a fjord with a smaller creek | |||
| N | Nuerniakat | |||
| O | Kugpat | |||
| P | Igdluarsik | |||
| Q | Sangmilek, a little fjord with a creek | |||
| R | Nutugkat | |||
| S | Amagat | |||
| T | Kangerdluarsikajik, a smaller fjord | |||
| U | Kernertuarsik | |||