A trip to the art supply store for some Inuit crafts and they brought in a very special item. I was surprised to find a big chunk of stone carved into a beautiful pattern of carvings, all of them carved from the same stone, but all in different shapes and sizes. It was huge! I couldn’t believe my eyes. I had been so focused on the fact that this was made by an Inuit woman in Alaska who would have been in her 90s.
The stone is called a “pounak,” which is a very old word for “stone.” Basically, a pounak is a big block of stone carved into a beautiful pattern. The stone is used to make tools, jewelry, and other items for Inuits.