Mary has made many trips to the Canadian Arctic where she has learned much about the Inuksuk - a stone structure that communicates knowledge essential for survival to an Arctic traveller.
Inuksuit (plural) are found throughout the Arctic areas of Alaska, Arctic Canada and Greenland. Inuksuit have been used by the Inuit to act in the place of human messengers. For those who understand their forms, inuksuit in the Arctic are very important helpers: they can show direction, tell about a good hunting or fishing area, show where food is stored, indicate a good resting place or act as a message centre. Every inuksuk is unique because it is built from the stones at hand. Inuksuit can be small or large; a single rock put in place; several rocks balanced on top of each other; boulders placed in a pile; or flat stones stocked. One of these stone structures is known as an inuksuk; two are called inuksuuk; and three or more are referred to as inuksuit.
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