Thule Culture

Thule people brought with them a sophisticated sea-hunting technology that had been developed in the Bering Sea area. They hunted animals as large as bowhead whales and were able to store sufficient food to allow winter occupation of permanent villages composed of houses built from stone, whalebones and turf.

Most Thule artifacts were made from bone, antler, ivory and wood; they used few stone tools, preferring cutting edges of metal obtained either from natural deposits or from Greenlandic Norse. Thule culture declined after about 1600 AD from a combination of deteriorating climatic conditions and the introduction of diseases from contact with Europeans, but the people continued to occupy arctic Canada and are directly ancestral to the historic INUIT.

Bow for Bow Drill
Ivory, Baffin Island, NWT, Thule culture (courtesy NMC).

Comb
Walrus tusk comb, Pelly Bay region, NWT, Thule culture (courtesy Eskimo Museum, Churchill).

Marlinspike
Ivory marlinspike, Baffin Island, NWT, Thule culture (courtesy NMC).

Thule Winter House
The floors and lower walls are made with flagstones, and the roof is held up by whale bones covered with skins and slabs of rock. The house is then covered with sod (courtesy CMC).

Author ROBERT MCGHEE

Suggested Reading
Robert McGhee, Canadian Arctic Prehistory (1978).

Links to Other Sites
Canadian Aboriginal Writing and Arts Challenge
The website for the Canadian Aboriginal Writing and Arts Challenge, which features Canada's largest essay writing competition for Aboriginal youth (ages 14-29) and a companion program for those who prefer to work through painting, drawing and photography. See their guidelines, teacher resources, profiles of winners, and more. From the Historica-Dominion Institute.

The Inuvialuit of the Western Arctic
A comprehensive multimedia collection of stories and images about the history, lifestyle, and culture of the Inuvialuit (Inuit) people in Canada’s North. From the Canadian Museum of Civilization.

Arctic Archaeology
An illustrated website about archaeological research and prehistoric culture in the Canadian Arctic. From the University of Waterloo.

The Forgotten Story of Inuit Whalers
This site explores the role of whale hunting in ancient Inuit (Thule) culture. Features videos with commentary by international experts, archival photographs, and more.