Common Habit of a Kamtchadale with her Child in 1768

by Thomas Jefferys

Such an evocative illustration, published by Thomas Jefferys, a celebrated cartographer, in 1768, provides a unique ethnographical depiction of the way of life of the inhabitants of the Kamchatka Peninsula – the Itelmen (Kamtchadale).

As it can be seen on the picture, the custom depicted here is important for surviving in this harsh environment and consists in the strong physical proximity between the parents and their baby. In order to shield the child from cold Siberian winds, the mother takes advantage of her own warm body by wrapping the child in a cradle board or a hooded wrap lined with reindeer fur or moss.