Therkel Mathiassen
Encyclopedia
Therkel Mathiassen was an archaeologist, anthropologist, cartographer, and ethnographer notable for his scientific study of the Arctic
.
Mathiassen and Peter Freuchen
took part in the Fifth Danish Thule Expedition led by Knud Rasmussen. During his travels, Mathiassen gave out thimble
s to local Inuit
, thus earning the Igloolik nickname, Tikkilik ("the one with the thimbles"). In 1922, Mathiassen began an archaeological investigation at a site he called "Naujan" (Naujaat
); the first archaeological excavation in Canada's Arctic. This was also the second ever Thule culture archaeological excavation, following the 1916 Comer's Midden
in North Greenland. Mathiassen was able to manually excavate through peat, sod, and gravel, portions of 12 sod houses and a kitchen-midden
.
In 1929, Mathiassen worked on another midden archaeological excavation, and uncovered a Norse culture in Inugsuk, Greenland. Frederica de Laguna
was his research assistant.
Mathiassen was a member of the initial Danish committee of Societas Arctica Scandinavica, dedicated to Scandinavian research in Arctic humanistic and natural sciences. He was a prolific author of works, which have later been described as monumental and as marking the beginning of the professional period in arctic archaeology. His works of the 1920s and 1930s introduced the concept of the Thule culture but also dismissed the theory of a stone age people in Greenland as first described on a scientific basis by Ole Solberg in 1907. The existence of a stone age people in Greenland was later established through the use of radiocarbon dating
in the 1950s.
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
.
Mathiassen and Peter Freuchen
Peter Freuchen
Peter Freuchen, born Lorenz Peter Elfred Freuchen was a Danish explorer, author, journalist and anthropologist.-Biography:...
took part in the Fifth Danish Thule Expedition led by Knud Rasmussen. During his travels, Mathiassen gave out thimble
Thimble
A thimble is a small hard pitted cup worn for protection on the finger that pushes the needle in sewing.The earliest known thimble was Roman and was found at Pompeii. Made of bronze, its creation has been dated to the 1st century AD...
s to local Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
, thus earning the Igloolik nickname, Tikkilik ("the one with the thimbles"). In 1922, Mathiassen began an archaeological investigation at a site he called "Naujan" (Naujaat
Repulse Bay
Repulse Bay is a bay in the southern part of Hong Kong Island, located in the Southern District, Hong Kong.-Geography:Repulse Bay is located in the south of Hong Kong Island, to the east of Deep Water Bay and to the west of Middle Bay and South Bay...
); the first archaeological excavation in Canada's Arctic. This was also the second ever Thule culture archaeological excavation, following the 1916 Comer's Midden
Comer's Midden
Comer's Midden is a 1916 archaeological excavation site near the"Arctic Station of Thule" , north of Mt. Dundas , in North Star Bay, northern Greenland. It is the find after which the Thule culture is named...
in North Greenland. Mathiassen was able to manually excavate through peat, sod, and gravel, portions of 12 sod houses and a kitchen-midden
Midden
A midden, is an old dump for domestic waste which may consist of animal bone, human excrement, botanical material, vermin, shells, sherds, lithics , and other artifacts and ecofacts associated with past human occupation...
.
In 1929, Mathiassen worked on another midden archaeological excavation, and uncovered a Norse culture in Inugsuk, Greenland. Frederica de Laguna
Frederica de Laguna
Frederica de Laguna was an American anthropologist. Her parents, Theodore Lopez de Leo de Laguna and Grace Mead Andrus, were, respectively, Spanish-American and, in Frederica's own words, "Connecticut Yankee". Both received doctorates from Cornell and would later teach philosophy at Bryn...
was his research assistant.
Mathiassen was a member of the initial Danish committee of Societas Arctica Scandinavica, dedicated to Scandinavian research in Arctic humanistic and natural sciences. He was a prolific author of works, which have later been described as monumental and as marking the beginning of the professional period in arctic archaeology. His works of the 1920s and 1930s introduced the concept of the Thule culture but also dismissed the theory of a stone age people in Greenland as first described on a scientific basis by Ole Solberg in 1907. The existence of a stone age people in Greenland was later established through the use of radiocarbon dating
Radiocarbon dating
Radiocarbon dating is a radiometric dating method that uses the naturally occurring radioisotope carbon-14 to estimate the age of carbon-bearing materials up to about 58,000 to 62,000 years. Raw, i.e. uncalibrated, radiocarbon ages are usually reported in radiocarbon years "Before Present" ,...
in the 1950s.