Narwhals come alive in the pages of this expanded 2nd edition of an award-winning Smithsonian book accompanying a Smithsonian exhibit seen by millions of visitors since its opening in 2017 and its 10-year tour throughout North America. Added sections on the legend and lore of narwhal tusk trade, high tech science from genetics to advances in nanoscale views of the inner working of the sensory tusk, and collecting insights from Inuit elders adds new information about this beloved and mysterious creature. Inuit art and knowledge blend with science to create new understandings about the seemingly harsh arctic seascape. Authors and editors Martin Nweeia and William Fitzhugh assemble nearly one hundred scientists and Inuit to help us better understand a whale that brings endless fascination. The narwhal with its extraordinary sensory tusk continues to inspire awe and teaches us much about the need for attention to our rapidly changing world and its endangered animals and ecosystems. Who would think that successful companies, unique individuals, and even political campaigns would be called narwhals? Wonder, explore, and discover as you meet one of the most popular and unique animals on the planet.
Martin T. Nweeia is a Smithsonian research associate and content curator for the Smithsonian exhibit Narwhal: Revealing an Arctic Legend. The Harvard School of Dental Medicine lecturer and Case Western Reserve clinical assistant professor in dental medicine has devoted 18 years to studies of narwhal tusk function. He is an Explorers Club fellow leading and collaborating on 16 High Arctic expeditions, and was a senior research scientist at Harvards Laboratory for Informational and Translational Technologies and the Hauschka Bone Laboratory. His integration of science and Inuit traditional knowledge was highlighted by the National Science Foundation in a report to the US Congress as a model for future scientists to utilize as they seek to better understand our world. Dr. Nweeia was selected in 2017 by the US Embassy under a Fulbright Grant to deliver a series of talks on behalf of the US scientific community to help celebrate Canadas 150 years. Nweeia was honored by an Explorers Club Lowell Thomas Award in 2017. William Fitzhugh is Arctic Curator and Director of the Smithsonian Institutions Arctic Studies Center in the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. He has conducted anthropological and archaeological research throughout the circumpolar region and is visiting professor at Dartmouth College. The narwhal exhibition and book is the latest in a series of Smithsonian exhibitions that include Bering Sea Eskimos, the Ainu of Japan, cultures of Siberia and Alaska, Vikings, Genghis Khan, and ancient Bering Sea Eskimo art. His most recent books are Maine to Greenland: Exploring the Maritime Far Northeast and Bark and Skin Boats of Northern Eurasia, to appear in 2018.
