Inuit heritage org plans replica of Thule whalebone house for Iqaluit

The site of an ancient qammaq at Crystal II near Iqaluit. (PHOTO COURTESY OF IHT)

This site at Crystal II is another possible location for a replica of a Thule dwelling that the Inuit Heritage Trust wants to create in Iqaluit. (PHOTO COURTESY OF IHT)

This site by the near the head of the Apex Trail is a possible location for a full-scale replica of a Thule whalebone and sealskin house that the Inuit Heritage Trust wants to create in Iqaluit by 2016. (PHOTO COURTESY OF IHT)

A new building will soon add its modest profile to the Iqaluit cityscape, but this cozy dwelling will be made from traditional materials such as sealskin and whalebone — plaster whalebone, that is.

The Inuit Heritage Trust wants to complete a full-scale replica of a Thule dwelling by fall 2016 within walking distance of Nunavut’s capital, at one of two sites they’re currently considering.

They hope that the roughly two-metre high house — a semi-circular ring of bowhead jawbones covered in blankets of sealskin — will become a gathering point for members of the local Inuit community to explore their heritage.

“We will install interpretive signs that will talk about the history of Thule and Dorset culture, the history of Iqaluit, and we will also encourage organizations to host events that are related to Inuit knowledge,” said the Thule house project manager, Torsten Diesel.

The Thule, the ancestors of today’s Inuit, followed warming Arctic temperatures to migrate east from Alaska across the continent as far as Baffin Island and Greenland, venturing as far north as the Nares Strait dividing Ellesmere Island from Greenland.

As the Thule spread out, they incorporated the existing Dorset culture that inhabited the eastern Arctic — replacing them completely by about 1500 CE.

While much larger Thule camps are found elsewhere, Iqaluit still holds a special place in Inuit pre-history.

One of the proposed site locations for the Thule house project is next to an ancient and unique Thule foundation — dubbed the “Crystal II” archeological site.

Crystal II was the first archaeological site to contain both Thule and Dorset artifacts, giving archaeologists their first opportunity to lay relics side by side and distinguish between the two cultures.

“Since they found both Thule and Dorset artifacts, it even predates 1,000 years ago,” Diesel said.

The Inuit Heritage Trust has another site in mind too — the Apex trail-head just past the old cemetery in Iqaluit — and plans to choose a site within the next few months.

“I had presentations with the city before the election and there was lots of verbal support for the project. I’m hoping to pick up discussions from there and see if the new council is equally in support,” Diesel said.

Consultation with the community, he said, is essential for a project like this to be successful.

“I’d like to interview elders about life in the area, about their knowledge of old dwelling structures, their knowledge about building houses like that,” said Diesel.

Should the project get the green light, the Inuit Heritage Trust plans to hire local hunters to harvest the seals, and local seamstresses to sew the roof, prepare the skins and collect heather for insulation.

While construction costs for the house are small, Diesel has larger plans to integrate the Thule house into Nunavut’s heritage network, or maybe even contribute to it.

The Inuit Heritage Trust plans to host a workshop at the completed Thule site for heritage workers from across Nunavut to study the project and brainstorm projects which could fit their own communities’ heritage and budget.

Infrastructure around the house will be upgraded with boardwalks and signage for visitors.

The final cost for this project, Diesel believes, will come in at just over $400,000.

Most of the funding is coming out of the heritage trust’s annual budget from NTI, but the organization is also pursuing potential donations from the regional Inuit associations and the federal government.

The next steps are only a few weeks away.

“We still need to do more community consultation, which I’m hoping to do over the wintertime this year to finalize the location of the house,” said Diesel.

“We should have the environmental surveys in the next couple weeks. My timeline now is to at least have the excavation done by autumn of next year and set up the framework, if there is still time and resources to cover the structure with the roof.”