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Extremes: Life in Subartic Canada

A fascinating and moving insight into life of one of Canada's indigenous peoples.

In the 1850s and 60s, Scottish fur traders collected beautifully crafted objects from the Dogrib Dene (or Tlicho, in their own language) living in the Canadian subarctic. Part of National Museums Scotland's collection, these priceless objects provide a fascinating insight into a living community.

Realising the need to preserve their culture and ensure their future, this exhibition examined how this process of documentation helped the Tlicho assert their Land Claim and won the right to Self Government in 2005.

Extremes: Life in Subarctic Canada was the result of a relationship National Museums Scotland built with the descendants of the people who traded with those pioneering Scots. The exhibition returned to Scotland from Canada and included contemporary material purchased from the Tlicho for our collections.