Greenland: Fake Tupilaks flood market

SIKU CIRCUMPOLAR NEWS SERVICE

The Danish daily newspaper Politiken reported last week that cheaply carved sperm whale teeth from Bali are being smuggled into Denmark and Greenland to be sold as authentic Greenlandic Tupilaks.

Customs officials in Denmark seized 20 fake tupilaks last month in a knapsack — just one of several similar seizures over recent months.

Due to an international ban on trade in whale products, most tupilaks are carved from narwhal teeth or reindeer bones. Genuine sperm whale pieces are selling for more that $1000.

Officials are worried that the cheaper fakes will cut into the market for the genuine article.

“If it takes an expert to tell the difference between a genuine and a fake tupilak figure, the average tourist or consumer at large is going to shy way from buying anything at all,” biologist Thor Hjarsen said in an interview.

The Home Rule Government has already issued a warning about the fake tupilaks.