Bird Bolas
date: label: Accession Date
content: 7 Jun 1912
label: Collection Date
content: 1878 to 1909
name: label: Collector
content: Gov John G. Brady
label: Donor Name
content: Mrs. Edward H. Harriman
notes: label: Notes
content: From card: "8 irregular bone blocks attached each to sinew thong. For entangling birds."
label: Notes
content: A "bola", from the Spanish word for 'ball', is a type of weapon consisting of a cluster of weights on strings attached to a hand grip that can be thrown at an animal or bird to entangle its legs or wings. Weapons similar to bolases can be found around the world for hunting a large variety of game, but in Inuit communities they are most often used to hunt birds. The bola would be thrown into a flying flock of birds, entrap one or more of the animals, and bring them down to the ground. This bola made with walrus ivory weights was collected from an Inupiaq community in Alaska.
label: Record Last Modified
content: 5 Dec 2020
label: Specimen Count
content: 1
place: label: Place
content: Nunivak Island, Bering Sea, Alaska, United States, North America
topic: label: Topic
content: Ethnology
culture: label: Culture
content: Eskimo, Inupiaq
setName: label: See more items in
content: Anthropology
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: NMNH - Anthropology Dept.
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: 054171
label: USNM Number
content: E274505-0
objectType: label: Object Type
content: Bola