Remote Nunavut site reveals artefacts of the proto-Inuit Thule culture

Excavations of the remote site of Qaiqsut, north of Baffin Island, in north-eastern Canada’s Nunavut region revealed numerous artefacts that belonged to the proto-Inuit Thule culture. The site consists of a a sod house located in Sirmilik National Park at an area that slowly erodes into the Atlantic Ocean.

Whale bone with saw marks (by CBC News)
Whale bone with saw marks (by CBC News)

The site has been used by ancestors of Inuit and more recently by whalers. Among the finds are whale and seal bones, a possible arrowhead and a blue seed bead, used as jewellery. More recent finds include iron nails. The sod house is one of a handful at the site. The coastal site is endangered by erosion. Some of the area already eroded away into the Ocean after years of tidal action.

The site of excavations (by CBC News)
The site of excavations (by CBC News)

(after CBC News)

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