Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability

CAS Anthropology Collections Database


Catalog Number

CAS 2006-0009-0016   CAS 2006-0009-0016; Placemat
Category Tools & Implements; Visual Arts
Object Name Placemat
Culture Inupiat
Global Region North America
Country USA
State/Prov./Dist. Alaska
County Anchorage
Other Geographic Data City: Anchorage
Maker's Name Robert Mayokok (1903-1983)
Date of Manufacture 1974
Collection Name N/A
Materials Paper; Plastic
Description Commercially made plastic-covered place mat showing a reproduction of a pen and ink drawing on the front entitled “Welcome Home”; Central image is that of a Native Alaskan couple embracing while one child tosses a ball in the background and another plays with a bolo; Surrounding the central image are smaller vignettes depicting a hunter killing a polar bear and finally hanging its skin on a drying frame, another man roping a reindeer and finally hitching it to a sled, another man hunting a seal and dragging it home and butchering it, and a man driving a sled and dog team away from an igloo; Artist’s signature “Robert Mayokok” is reproduced in lower right corner; Imprinted in lower left corner is “Copyright MCMLXXIV by Griffin’s, Alaska” and in lower right corner, “Robert Mayokok, Artist”; Reverse side of place mat shows photo of Mayokok and brief biography of him, printed against a dark brown cross-hatched background.
Dimensions (cm) Width = 44.5, Thickness = 0.1, Length = 29.5