"Elegant, distinctively styled garments of white caribou hide once were a striking feature of Gwich'in culture. Clothing styles changed following contact with Europeans, however, and by the late nineteenth century low Gwich'in seamstresses made "old style" outfits. Within a few generations, as women no longer learned and passed on the skills involved, knowledge of this aspect of their culture was lost to the Gwich'in." "In February 2000, in partnership with the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre and the Canadian Museum of Civilization (CMC), the Gwich'in Social and Cultural Institute initiated a project to "repatriate" the knowledge and skills involved in making a traditional summer clothing outfit through replication of a nineteenth century example from the CMC collection. More than forty seamstresses and many others in Gwich'in communities, and in the two museums, participated. Their work culminated in early 2003 with the completion of five beautiful reproduction outfits." "This book tells the story of this collaboration between two museums and the Gwich'in of Canada's Northwest Territories. It is richly illustrated - with historic and artifact photographs, garment pattern drawings, and images of the people, places and events central to the project.

This will be a resource to all who are interested in Gwich'in cultural heritage."--BOOK JACKET.