7" Ancient Sun Glasses by Leo Uttaq Gjoa Haven

Inuit art: Snow Goggles
Inuit Artist: Leo Uttaq
Size: 7" long, 3" high
Community: Gjoa Haven, NU 21
Stone: Bone
id: c-125

Even the Inuit experience snow blindness. Snow blindness is like a sunburn on your eyes after exposure to too much ultraviolet light.

To prevent snow blindness, simply wear sunglasses that block UV light.

But in the Arctic, before the availability of sunglasses, snow goggles were carved from antlers with only a horizontal slit carved into the bone.  This significantly reduced the exposure of the eye to UV rays.

I love these carvings of "artifacts" of Inuit life.  They tell a story about how these innovative people have managed to live for thousands of years in an environment that would kill the average person in a few hours.  Amazing!

See our notes on The Gjoa Haven Collection.

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