Etched Walrus Tusk on Walrus Head Base

Kinngait (Cape Dorset)
Walrus Tusk Ivory, Serpentine
21” x 2.25” x 2.75”

* Cannot be shipped out of Canada.

Osuitok Ipeelee first began carving ivory in 1935 at the age of twelve under the watchful eye of his father, the shaman Ohotok, and was already widely known among the Inuit for his carving skills by the time James Houston first met Osuitok in Kinngait in 1957.

Created circa 1964, this masterwork of scrimshaw and sculpture seamlessly weaves Arctic life, legend, and artistic legacy into a single, breathtaking composition. Delicately inscribed along the length of the walrus tusk are vivid scenes from the North, a standing caribou (arguably the most signature motif in Ipeelee’s sculpture), a hunter with dog and harpoon, and an Arctic fox. Yet, it is the central image that truly captivates: a scrimshawed design strikingly reminiscent of Ipeelee’s iconic 1959 sealskin stencil print Owl, Fox, and Hare Legend, bridging his mastery of two distinct mediums and anchoring the work in both storytelling and art history. 

That this singular piece unites the traditions of early ivory carving—a practice Ipeelee began in boyhood—with the visual language of his pioneering printmaking makes it not only rare, but a deeply revealing portrait of one of Inuit art’s most versatile and influential creators. The tusk itself rests on a finely carved serpentine walrus head, its miniature ivory tusks adding a final touch of refinement to this richly layered celebration of Inuit tradition, survival, and imagination.