The Alaska State Museum has awarded the Alutiiq Museum $10,000 to support the publication of Kal’unek – From Karluk, a book dedicated to exploring the museum’s largest collection. Karluk One contains 26,000 objects from a prehistoric Alutiiq village at the mouth of the Karluk River. Inundated by fresh water, the site held a remarkable array of artifacts; delicate bone, wood, and fiber objects seldom preserved in ancient deposits. The book will unite Alutiiq speakers, community members, and researchers to tell site’s story and share its collection.

“Kal’unek is a community effort”, said museum Deputy Director and project coordinator Amy Steffian. “We brought together people involved in the excavation, in caring for the collection, and in learning from its contents to share their knowledge. Elders provided Alutiiq terms for the objects. Students and teachers wrote about working on the excavations. Community leaders discussed working with archaeologists, and archaeologists shared their observations. The presentation also includes hundreds of pictures of artifacts taken by Sven Haakanson and Marnie Leist. Karluk one has been central to building understanding of Alutiiq culture, and to fueling the heritage movement, but it is not widely published. This book will make the museum’s cornerstone collection much more accessible.”

The Alaska State Museum grant is the first step in funding the publication, which is planned for release by the University of Alaska Press in the fall of 2014. “We are so grateful for the Alaska State Museum’s leadership in our fundraising efforts,” said Steffian. “Their vote of confidence in the project will help us attract the remaining support needed to bring the book to print.” The total cost of publication is an estimated $33,660, which the museum is working to raise through gifts and additional grants.

The $10,000 award comes from an annual granting process administered the Alaska State Museum with funds appropriated by the state legislature. This spring, museums across Alaska competed for a portion the $105,600 in available funds. $10,000 represents the maximum available award.

The Alutiiq Museum is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and sharing the cultural traditions of the Alutiiq, a Native Alaskan people. Representatives of Kodiak Alutiiq organizations govern the museum with funding from charitable contributions, memberships, grants, contracts, and sales.