|
Inunnguaq – “like a person” |
|
|
|
The Inuit people built these stone figures for many different purposes. Sometimes these Inuksuit (plural) were used as a navigational marker to direct the way along different routes of travel and to indicate where food caches were, or to mark good hunting or fishing grounds. It is said that the Inuit also used Inuksuit to herd caribou into valleys by strategically placing them along the ridges on each side of the valley. The figures looked like human silhouettes to the caribou when looking up from the valley below tricking the herd into moving straight ahead, down the valley. At times the Inuksuk were built out of respect for ancestors or to warn the traveler of impending danger in the area. |
