Inukshuk stone landmark sculpture

Description:	Figures like this one, but much larger, can be seen in remote areas of Canada. There, the landscape is barren, without many landmarks to help people find their way. Years ago, people built their own landmarks out of stones, carefully chosen and balanced to create different shapes. Called inuksuit (singular: inukshuk, ee-nook-shook), some have lasted for hundreds of years. Each shape held a different meaning, conveying important messages to those who passed by. It was possible for a person to tell another how to get from one distant place to another by describing not only the landscape, but the shapes of the inuksuit along the way. They also warned of dangerous places, showed where food was stored, and marked where a significant thing happened so people could act respectful. Most importantly, they acted as helpers for hunting caribou, the most important animal to the peoples of the Arctic. Inuksuit sometimes served as part of hunting parties, built to help scare caribou herds toward hunters. Some Inuit in the remote areas of the far north continue to build them today. However, most use modern technologies such as GPS (Global Positioning Systems). The artist who created the museums sculpture, Maurice Bedard, harvested the soapstone at Eagle Lake in Northwestern Ontario. He then constructed the figure in his workshop in Kenora, Ontario. Maurice has been building the figures for 20 years. He started building them as a hobby with his daughter and eventually turned it into a business. He is Metis (a descendant of French-Canadians and Native Americans) and the 5th generation nephew of Louis Riel, the famous Metis leader of the 1800s.
Source:	http://www.digitalindy.org/cdm/ref/collection/tcm/id/1925
Collection:	The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
Rights:	https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/;
Copyright:	Creative Commons (CC By-SA 3.0);
Subjects:	Inukshuks -- Canada Indians of North America Inuit Cairns

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