Anderson, David G.

English

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76 • REVIEWSSPIRIT OF SIBERIA: TRADITIONAL NATIVE LIFE,CLOTHING, AND FOOTWEAR. By JILL OAKES andRICK RIEWE. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 1998.Co-published with the Bata Shoe Museum. ISBN1-55054-648-1. viii + 215 p., maps, b&w and colourillus., appendices, bib., index. Hardbound. Cdn$65.00.This beautifully produced book explores the traditionalculture of Siberian indigenous peoples through their foot-wear. Richly illustrated with contemporary and archivalphotographs, maps, and patterns, the volume is a highlyenergetic reflection of Jill Oakes and Rick Riewe’s re-search in the Canadian Arctic, now focused upon theRussian North. The book owes its origin to a ten-yearcollection effort by the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto,which presented to the North American public some of therich ethnographic holdings of Russian museums. Intriguedby the similarity between Siberian and Canadian aborigi-nal footwear, the authors have produced a well-organizedcollection of ethnographic descriptions, histories, andphotographs of Siberian peoples viewed through the prismof their footwear.Organized along national and linguistic divisions, thebook is prefaced by a good introduction and containsseveral useful appendices that define terms and explain thetechnology of producing footwear. The bibliography givesthe reader one of the better collections of English-lan-guage work on Siberian native peoples (but has some typosin the Russian sources). The book ends with a comparativechapter that extends Grafira Mikhailovich Vasilevich’s(1963) typology of Siberian footwear, using the authors’experience from the Canadian North.In general, each chapter begins with a thumbnail eth-nography of one of ten northern Siberian groups. The verytraditional descriptions of geography and economy arecombined with good descriptions of local worldviews.Each chapter then offers full-page illustrations of cos-tumes from the Bata Shoe Museum exhibition, as well ascontemporary photographs of indigenous people usingtheir clothing in action. Archival photographs, taken fromthe Russian Museum of Ethnography, help reinforce thedescriptions of tradition with representations of contem-porary life. The most stunning part of the book is the high-quality illustrations of truly special collections from theRussian Museum of Ethnography. The authors havethoughtfully added drawings of details of the exhibits.Although the focus of the book is on footwear, the rangeof the portrayal of aboriginal material culture is wide.Some chapters portray entire costumes, as well as tools,such as child cradles designed for reindeer in harness.Each chapter then moves to a long section (often up to one-third of its length) that describes footwear according tohow it is made and who uses it (such as children orshamans).The images in the book speak strongly for a local viewof traditional culture. I have given a dozen copies of thebook to visiting aboriginal delegations from Siberia (mostMAMMALS OF NORTH AMERICA. TEMPERATE ANDARCTIC REGIONS. By ADRIAN FORSYTH. Willowdale,Ontario: Firefly Books, 1999. ISBN 1-55209-409-X.350 p., maps, colour illus., bib., index. Hardbound.Cdn$40.00.This is an exceptionally beautiful book. The photographyof terrestrial and marine mammals is stunning and theirvisual presentation of great artistic quality. These capti-vating images dominate the book page by page. AdrianForsyth is a very talented writer, and this book is wellorganized. Not only are species and their biology de-scribed, but also interesting aspects of the biology of anygiven family. There are thus sections called “Why thereare so many Shrews?” “Sex-Ratio Manipulation,”of whom do not read English), who have immediatelyrecognized the value and sensitivity behind the range ofimages. Speaking personally, from my own fieldwork inSiberia, I have noticed that the difference in style offootwear is generally one of the most important nationalmarkers of culture in Siberia today. As an anthropologist,however, I would have liked to see in this collection somediscussion of how various types of footwear are combinedin everyday life in post-Soviet Siberia. Most of the illustra-tions speak to an ideal form of culture, which to a greatextent is present only in museums and in the wardrobes ofmusical ensembles. Contemporary tundra people combineleather, rubber, and other forms of industrial footwear ininteresting and complex ways with fish-skin and reindeerfootwear in different seasons. Perhaps one of the moreexotic local adaptations of tradition is the traditional beadedreindeer boot glued onto a rubber sole for use in Siberianregional cities. Further, it would have been nice if theauthors, in an attempt to widen the typology developed inthe last chapter, had provided their expert assessment ofhow footwear techniques mix across cultural lines. Someof this assessment is implicit in the chapters of the book,which combine Yukagir and Yakut footwear, for example,but distinguish Evenki and Even footwear.This book is a beautful and authoritative introduction tomodern Siberian culture and makes an excellent gift asmuch as a good reference source. This reader hopes theauthors continue their work in this area.REFERENCEVASILEVICH, G.M. 1963. Tipi obovi narodov Sibiri. Sbornik Muzeiaantropologi i etnografi tom XXI. Moskva: Akademii Nauk.David G. AndersonDepartment of AnthropologyUniversity of AlbertaEdmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2H1

Spirit of Siberia: Traditional Native Life, Clothing, and Footwear, by Jill Oakes and Rick Riewe

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Spirit of Siberia: Traditional Native Life, Clothing, and Footwear, by Jill Oakes and Rick Riewe

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