An Archaeological Perspective on Eskimo Economy

Abstract

This article attempts to highlight certain qualities of the Eskimo economy seen in overview and, if it repeats some anthropological clichés, perhaps the repetition will serve a purpose for clichés, despite their shortcomings, often become such by an innate worth. Further, some used here seem to have been largely forgotten in recent literature on Eskimo prehistory. A rare exception, and a point of departure for this article, was recently offered by Collins, who notes, 'In America, however, there is sometimes a tendency to see an overly close relationship between specific cultural manifestations and particular kinds of environment, and to overemphasize the role of environment in the dissemination of culture. In the Eskimo field this point of view is reflected in the related concept of a rather sharp dichotomy between inland and coast, with the former the center of origin—a kind of fata morgana that has beset Eskimo archaeology for decades and which still exerts its residual influence, even though the concept in its original elaborated form no longer finds acceptance.' (Collins, 1962, 134.