No, I am not performing surgeries at the hospital and stitching up guts. I am embracing this wonderful place I am living and experiencing some of t...
No, I am not performing surgeries at the hospital and stitching up guts. I am embracing this wonderful place I am living and experiencing some of their traditional crafts.
The Yup’ik museum holds some classes to teach crafts and continue traditions. This weekend, they held a gut skin sewing class. Usually it is with seal gut, but due to the federal Marine Mammal Act, only Alaska Natives can handle seal gut intestines. For us non-natives, we used hog intestines.
First: You tie one end and blow up the intestines like a balloon and tie the other end. Then, the intestines have to be stretched out straight and allowed to dry over night.
Second: Once completely dry, you identify the top and cut along the crease to open up the intestine and make it into a flat sheet.
Here you can see the opened up intestines. They are very thin and feel like tissue paper. They have a very distinct smell too. Kinda smells like a wet dog that rolled in something smelly outside.
The intestine ends were lightly dampened to make it more pliable and re-enforced with strands of straw/grass.
Here it is! I can make it into a window ornament or wall hanging by adding decorative trim. Seal gut was traditionally used to make waterproof parkas, doll clothing, windows in houses, earrings, and many other things.
A Journey To What Matters Project Grant- Material Traditions: Sewing Gut at Alaska Native Medical Center, Anchorage. Photo courtesy of TCF.
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