Gilcrease Museum is temporarily closed for construction.

Get the Full Story
Men's quilled leather moccasins with split tongue and metal cone tassels
Native American; Oglala Sioux
Soft soled beaded leather moccasins with floral patterns and images of birds on the cuff
Native American; Chippewa

Mukluks made of fish skin and trimmed with cotton around the top / Inuit

Essay/Description

Mukluks made of fish skin and trimmed with cotton around the top.

The Inuit made their boots with great care and attention to detail because one’s feet could easily get frostbitten and handicap one for life. The boots were made of skins. De-haired seal-skin was typically used because it made the boots waterproof (Issenman 1997). Often the boots would reach one’s knees and in some cases worked as trousers as well.

You may be interested in...

Title(s): 
Mukluks made of fish skin and trimmed with cotton around the top
Culture: 
Inuit
Date: 
19th century
Period: 
Historic
Place: 
Arctic
Materials/Techniques: 
fish skin, cotton, sinew
Classification: 
Object Type: 
Accession No: 
93.140a-b
Previous Number(s): 
93.140 a
Department: 
Not On View

Our Online Collections site is a work in progress. If you have information about this item that may be of assistance, please contact us.