Bone carving is one of the oldest types of applied and decorative arts. Since ancient times, the inhabitants of the North — the Nenets, Khanty, and Selkups — use bone, reindeer horn, walrus tusk, as well as mammoth fossil bones as an ornamental material. The indigenous population of Yamal are nomadic reindeer herders, so their main raw material was reindeer horn and bone. The products are very strong and durable. Bone-carving artisans made hunting and fishing tools, harness parts, household and ritual items. Household utensils made of wood, fur and bone are the basis of the traditional material culture of the northern peoples.

The Nenets have their own set of items related to tobacco use. It has entered the everyday life of the indigenous peoples of Yamal as soon as they began to trade with travelers and merchants from different countries. The snuff box in the Nenets language is called “syar ly”, which means “bone and tobacco”. The Nenets made snuff boxes from deer antler, mammoth tusk, wood and birch bark. It was a small container with a lid for storing snuff. Sometimes there was a small spatula, which was convenient to take tobacco with.

The exhibition of the Purovsky Museum presents a snuffbox, which was made in the 1920s. It is made from a mammoth tusk, which has always been valued for its color and quality. It is used around the world to create expensive trinket boxes, combs, jewelry, snuff boxes, panels and other items. The Nenets snuffbox could be elongated, and was more often oval in cross section. The bottom of the snuffbox could be solid or inserted. The lid tightly fit the neck of the box so that the tobacco did not get damp.

There were men’s and women’s snuffboxes. Men carried small snuffboxes, attached to their belt, along with a knife, a flint, amulets and working tools. A small amount of tobacco, which the owner might need away from his camp, was put inside the snuffboxes. Everyone tried to have the most beautiful snuffbox, so artisans and special manufactories decorated them with carvings, precious stones, chased ornaments and miniatures.

The main occupations of the Forest Nenets are hunting, reindeer herding and fishing. From early childhood, Nenets boys learn to hunt, make traps, tame deer, and shoot from a bow. Every father makes a belt for his son as soon as the boy is five years old. A child wears a children’s belt until the age of 14, and then makes and begins to wear an adult men’s belt. This is a sign that the young man is becoming a real reindeer herder and hunter.

The belt is made of strong deer hide, which is impervious to weather. This is especially important during kaslaniye — traveling with a deer herd. The belt is decorated with copper plaques, steel pendants, buttons, a garland of bone buckles and mammoth tusk amulets. In the pocket of the belt, there is often a hidden bear’s fang, which has long been considered a symbol of good luck in hunting and a talisman against evil spirits. A wooden stick with notches is hung from the belt — this is a reindeer breeder’s notebook, in which he writes down the number of females, males and calves in the herd.

A men’s belt is not only a sign of distinction and a way to store hunting accessories, but also an important item of the national Nenets men’s clothing. It helps to shorten or lengthen the malitsa — a spacious shirt made of cloth or skins. When a strong wind blows in the tundra, the hunter loosens his belt, and the malitsa descends to its full length, covering the legs.

A Nenets man can rarely be seen without a belt. He removes the belt during meals and puts it next to him. The Nenets use a hunting knife as cutlery, a working tool and a weapon: to carve up a carcass, make sleds and tackle, and protect themselves from predators. The knife is always at hand — on the right side of the belt. It is suspended on leather straps or chains. The Nenets reindeer herder sits on the sled on the left, so the scabbard is safe during the ride: snow does not get inside, and they are hidden from blows and damage.

On the belt there is a place for a bag with a pipe and a steel. The Nenets used to wear a powder flask — a container for gunpowder, which was used in ramrod guns. The stone for sharpening the knife is stored in an elegant bag made of red cloth, decorated with beads, embroidery and deer fur.