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Qajartalik ( Inuktitut for "where there is a kayak") is a petroglyph site located on the Qajartalik peninsula of Qikertaaluk Island, Nunavut, approximately 40 km southeast of Kangirsujuaq,
Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
. The site consists of over 150 carvings of faces in
soapstone Soapstone (also known as steatite or soaprock) is a talc-schist, which is a type of metamorphic rock. It is composed largely of the magnesium rich mineral talc. It is produced by dynamothermal metamorphism and metasomatism, which occur in the ...
. It was created by the
Dorset people The Dorset was a Paleo-Eskimo culture, lasting from to between and , that followed the Pre-Dorset and preceded the Thule people (proto-Inuit) in the North American Arctic. The culture and people are named after Cape Dorset (now Kinngait) in N ...
, the culture who inhabited the Canadian eastern Arctic and
Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...
beginning approximately 2,200 years ago before disappearing approximately 1,000 years ago, and who inhabited the region prior to the
Thule Thule ( grc-gre, Θούλη, Thoúlē; la, Thūlē) is the most northerly location mentioned in ancient Greek and Roman literature and cartography. Modern interpretations have included Orkney, Shetland, northern Scotland, the island of Saar ...
Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...
who arrived approximately 800 years ago. It is believed to be the northernmost rock art site in North America and is considered to be one of a kind. The site is currently on Canada's tentative list of sites proposed for inscription on the
UNESCO World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
.


Site

The site is located 50 metres from the shoreline and is 15 metres above sea level. The site is roughly 130 metres long, roughly forming the shape of a trough, and contains several formations of soapstone in which the petroglyphs were carved. In addition to being used for carving petroglyphs, the site was also used by the Dorset as a quarry for the creation of items such as
oil lamps An oil lamp is a lamp used to produce light continuously for a period of time using an oil-based fuel source. The use of oil lamps began thousands of years ago and continues to this day, although their use is less common in modern times. Th ...
and containers. Later, the Thule and Inuit also used the site as a quarry for the creation of items such as oil lamps and cooking pots, as well as for a source of raw materials for sculptures. Over 150 soapstone extraction zones have been identified at the site. Although the Thule and Inuit also used the site as a quarry, only the Dorset carved petroglyphs there. As the site has not been scientifically dated, it is not entirely clear when the petroglyphs were created or when the site was first quarried. Most of the petroglyphs depict human faces, but some represent animal faces. Additionally, some of the petroglyph faces appear to have both human and animal features. Some surfaces at the site only have a single engraving, while many others have groups of ten or more faces, not necessarily having a consistent orientation relative to one another. The faces range in size from 2-3 centimetres to more than 70 centimetres. The smaller engraving were made by incision with sharp-edge tools, and the larger engraving were made by pecking and grooving using hammerstones. Known for decades to the local Inuit population, the site was first documented by anthropologist Bernard Saladin D’Anglure in the 1960s, who learned of the site from Inuit hunters who would camp at Qikertaaluk Island. He initially identified 95 carvings at the site. Through casts he made of some of the carvings, he was able to identify them as being Dorset in origin. The site was visited and studied sporadically by archaeologists in the following years. In 1996, Avataq Cultural Institute did an extensive inventory of the site.


Preservation

Since 1996, the Avataq Cultural Institute has been working to study and develop the site as well as plan for its protection. In 2006, it was discovered that some vandalism had been committed at the site, likely in the spring of that year. This event spurred calls for additional protection of the site. On December 20, 2017,
Environment Minister An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of the environment) is a cabinet position charged with protecting the natural environment and promoting wildlife conservation. The areas associated with the duties of an ...
Catherine McKenna Catherine Mary McKenna (born August 5, 1971) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as a Cabinet minister from 2015 to 2021. A member of the Liberal Party, McKenna was the minister of environment and climate change from 2015 to ...
announced that Qajartalik was one of eight sites that would be added to Canada's tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, joining six sites already on the tentative list. It nomination was officially submitted on April 13, 2018. The justification for inscription was based on criteria (iii), with Parks Canada stating that "The Qajartalik petroglyph site is a unique archaeological site in the Canadian Arctic, providing a tangible link to the cultural tradition of the Dorset people."


External links

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References

{{reflist Petroglyphs in Canada Inuktitut words and phrases World Heritage Sites in Canada