A prehistoric population change in the Bering Strait region

Abstract

The Birnirk culture is important in Inupiak Eskimo prehistory because the Thule and Western Thule cultures and all recent prehistoric Eskimo cultures derive from it. Its appearance on the American side of Bering Strait has puzzled archaeologists because it is linked to the cultures of the Asian side of the strait and is not lineally related to the cultures, Norton and Ipiutak, that it replaced in Alaska. Recent excavations at Cape Nome, Alaska, have shed light on the nature of this replacement. I carried out these excavations during 1969–71 under the auspices of the University Museum of the University of Pennsylvania and under the supervision of Professor Froelich Rainey. The University Museum and the Explorers Club gave financial assistance.