Igigkaraat – Constellation

As with many cultures, Yup’ik people used the stars to navigate and had their own constellations. This mask represents a galaxy and the crystals are in the shapes of several Yup’ik constellations. Clockwise from the top are Qimugta (The Dog), the arrow part of Pitegcaun (Arrowhead), Taluyat (The Blackfish Trap), Tunturyuk (The Caribou) and Agyarrluk (the North Star). I learned about these constellations from the Math in a Cultural Context curriculum from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

-Jennifer Angaiak Wood, 2020