Fur Trade

During the sixteenth century, the Baltic Sea was teeming with ships connecting the towns around it through trade. Intense and expanding long-distance trade brought a variety of merchants, skippers, and sailors to busy port towns. This chapter investigates the reception of the people involved in long-distance trade across the Baltic when they visited foreign towns for trading purposes. I will argue that the traders' social positions traveled from the home community with them, and affected how they were received in the community they visited. The two main legal constructs that determined a person's legal identity and rights, burgher and guest, were closely related, and the privileges of the guest were bestowed by the hospitality of a burgher. Many of the visitors who were brought to the Baltic ports by the long-distance trade were not received

This study examined various Manchu–Chinese bilingual glossaries of set phrases (滿漢合璧成語集) compiled during the Qing dynasty, classifying them according to their typology, analyzing the contexts of their compilation, and investigating their contents and structural features in detail. The major findings of this study can be summarized in three main points.
First, it was confirmed that multiple glossaries compiling set phrases selected from the Confucian classics or frequently used expressions found in Qing dynasty official documents (公文書), memorials (章奏文), and imperial edicts (上諭文) — consisting of Chinese headwords of two to ten characters with corresponding Manchu translations — are currently held in institutions around the world, including in Korea, China, Germany, and Japan. These glossaries were surveyed comprehensively and classified by their textual characteristics, with bibliographical details and publication backgrounds closely examined for those with high research value.
Second, the study explored the background of their compilation. It was demonstrated that bannermen (旗人) compiled such bilingual glossaries as preparatory tools for the imperial translation examinations (繙譯考試), which required translating Classical Chinese texts into Manchu, including Confucian classics, official memorials, and edicts. Drawing on imperial edicts issued by the Qianlong Emperor that emphasized the correct use of Manchu set expressions, this study contextualized the need for bilingual expertise in Qing administrative and educational systems. The demand for these glossaries was directly tied to the practical need for bannermen to translate Chinese documents into proper Manchu in daily bureaucratic practice.
Third, the study analyzed the structure and linguistic features of these glossaries. By comparing examples produced across different periods, it became evident that even privately compiled glossaries reflected changes in official language policy. In particular, the Imperially Commissioned New Standard Manchu (欽定新淸語), promulgated in the 12th year of Qianlong’s reign (1747), served as a watershed moment in Qing translation practice. This standardized lexicon emphasizing semantic translation (義譯) over phonetic transcription (音譯) was faithfully incorporated not only into imperial editions but also into later privately produced bilingual glossaries. Evidence from sources produced as late as the Guangxu era suggests that bannermen continued to study and internalize these normative Manchu expressions into the final decades of the Qing dynasty.
In conclusion, this study provides a comprehensive survey of the Manchu–Chinese bilingual glossaries of set phrases compiled throughout the Qing dynasty, situating them within the broader socio-political context of language policy, imperial examination, and translation practice. These glossaries — encompassing both essential passages from the Confucian canon and standardized expressions used in Qing administrative documents — serve as invaluable resources for understanding how the Qing state’s Manchu language policy was implemented and internalized within the bannerman society.

Статья посвящена критическому анализу публикаций отечественных учёных (преимущественно гуманитарных дисциплин), в которых говорится о коренном населении Аляски и взаимодействии с ним русских в период существования там российских колоний со второй половины XVIII в. и до 1867 г., когда они были проданы США. Приходится с сожалением констатировать в целом невысокий уровень знаний по указанной тематике значительного числа российских авторов, что находит отражение в их научных трудах.

The article is a publication and study of a recently discovered legend about the defense of the former Russian fortress Ross (now Fort Ross) by the Californian Kashaya Indians, told by the spiritual leader of the Kashaya Essie Parrish in the 20th century. The published text is analyzed in the article from the standpoint of today’s knowledge about the history of Fort Ross. The article notes the discrepancy between a number of important points of the legend and historical facts; however, in the author’s opinion, it is possible that the plot core of this story reflects an undocumented event that could have taken place only in the very early period after the sale of Ross, in early 1842. At the same time, regardless
of its historical authenticity, the published legend is an important fact of the historical self-awareness of the Kashaya, whose ethnic history, which took place under the conditions of Russian colonization, is distinguished by great originality.

The vast majority of New England immigrants into present-day Wisconsin came after the sale of public lands began in 1834. However, small numbers emigrated to the region west of Lake Michigan in the decades after the end of the War of 1812 in 1815. Levi Warrington arrived as a soldier in 1820. After leaving the U.S. Army in 1822, he worked in the fur trade and married a Menominee Indian woman. Indeed, his life mirrored that of the many French residents who had settled in the region over the course of the previous century. Certain key documents, particularly his military discharge, allow historians to reconstruct the key events of his life in early Wisconsin.

The vast majority of New England immigrants into present-day Wisconsin came after the sale of public lands began in 1834. However, small numbers emigrated to the region west of Lake Michigan in the decades after the end of the War of 1812 in 1815. Levi Warrington arrived as a soldier in 1820. After leaving the U.S. Army in 1822, he worked in the fur trade and married a Menominee Indian woman. Indeed, his life mirrored that of the many French residents who had settled in the region over the course of the previous century. Certain key documents, particularly his military discharge, allow historians to reconstruct the key events of his life in early Wisconsin.

During the 19th and 20th centuries, Gablonz in northern Bohemia (now Jablonec nad Nisou in Czechia) was a major producer and supplier of glass and ceramic beads to the world market. This detailed study provides a thorough overview of the various production methods, including patent details, as well as information concerning bead names, shapes, coloring, decoration, sizing, stringing, and historic prices. The text is accompanied by numerous color illustrations of the various bead forms, including many sample cards.

Indeed, hunting, fishing and gathering food is central to all indigenous peoples' survival. It is perhaps felt most poignantly in the thousands of communities scattered across the northern Polar Regions of our planet. The threat that all of the Arctic's indigenous peoples feel to their culture, their language, to their heritage and to their environment is intimately connected to the fear we all have regarding our inherent rights to hunting, fishing, and gathering. -Aqqaluk Lynge (of Greenland), President, Inuit Circumpolar Conference (ICC); Remarks at the National Forum on the Future of Alaska Natives (1999) Sadly, I know that too many of our colleagues only have passing familiarity of what we mean by subsistence. Subsistence is a word that many people use without really knowing what it means [to] the Native people of this land. Most Americans. . . think that subsistence means basic survival . . . . If you aren't familiar with the ways of Native people, you might not know that subsistence is more than just simple sustenance-it is a way of life. The gathering and harvesting of natural resources, by the natural Native people of this nation has been going on for thousands of years. Subsistence is so much a part of the fabric of native existence, that without it, there would be no culture, no tradition, perhaps no community, and certainly no means of giving expression to the spiritual aspects of Native life.

Fashion is closely interconnected with traditional and digital media and the latter is widely known for setting and dissemination trends and making them viral. For example, TikTok set a trend for fur which climaxed in the winter 2023 and will probably stay in fashion longer with posts hashtagged #slaviccore, #slavicgirl, #slavicgirlcore, #slavicbimbo, or #slavicbimbogirl, where women promote the style of being dressed in furs. This cultural trend referring to Slavic people and the nostalgia for the 1990s and early 2000s is worth studying and discussing from semiotic and historical perspectives. An earlier boost in the popularity of fur in the West, initiated by the media, can be witnessed with the US release of Dоctor Zhivago in 1965. The hashtag #zhivagolook is still circulating on Instagram. This article describes these two cases and interprets them referring to Derrida's concept of "trace" and Schoenberg's concept of "developing variation" based on visual content analysis. We conclude that the current trend can be considered as a fashion reiteration with a recognizable trace, which is varied and thematically regenerated.

Bu makale, Eski Asur dönemine ait birinci elden belgelere yansıyan hırsızlık vakalarını inceleyerek, dönemin güvenlik anlayışı, toplumsal düzeni ve mülkiyet ilişkileri hakkında değerlendirmelerde bulunmayı amaçlamaktadır. Kültepe-Kaniš kazılarında gün yüzüne çıkarılan arşiv belgeleri, hırsızlık suçunun yalnızca maddi bir kayıp olarak değil, aynı zamanda toplumsal yapıyı tehdit eden bir unsur olarak da algılandığını göstermektedir. Asurlu tüccarların karşılaştığı güvenlik sorunları, Anadolu'daki zorlu coğrafi koşullar, eşkıyalık ve yetersiz yerel denetim ile birlikte ele alınmıştır. Çalışma kapsamında toplam 9 adet belge incelenmiş; bu belgelerde suçun tanımı, taraflar arasındaki ilişkiler, suçun gerçekleştiği sosyal bağlam ve uygulanan cezalar detaylı biçimde analiz edilmiştir. Bulgular, hırsızlık vakalarının sadece bireyler arası değil, aynı zamanda aile ve ticari ortaklar gibi kolektif yapılar içinde de ortaya çıktığını ve hukuki sürecin bu doğrultuda şekillendiğini ortaya koymaktadır. Araştırma, sınırlı sayıdaki belgeye dayanmasına rağmen Eski Asur toplumunda güvenlik olgusunun çok katmanlı doğasını anlamaya katkı sağlamayı hedeflemektedir.

Objective/Context: In this article, we examine how Chinese demand for pelts—of sea otters and other marine mammals—fueled the eighteenth-century competitive expansion of European and later American merchants and explorers in the Pacific islands and along the Pacific coast of North America. Sea otter pelts were a commodity directly linked to the creation of a Pacific Ocean economy, and California’s colonization resulted from imperial dynamics to which this trade gave rise. Methodology: Using both primary and secondary sources, we examine how these merchants’ quest to supply the lucrative Chinese luxury market with furs—“soft gold”—brought them into contact with indigenous peoples whose livelihoods and commercial networks would also be recruited into this global market but on quite unequal terms and with devastating consequences. Originality: The growth of this Pacific trade throughout the eighteenth century fueled geopolitical rivalries that led to the colonization of California with...

Этнические миграции, то есть перемещения какого-либо народа или его части на новые территории вне традиционных этнических границ играют знаметную роль в истории и бывают весьма разнообразны. В этом нетрудно убедиться на примере анализа этнических миграций в Русской Америке. Это название закрепилось за бывшими колониями Российской империи, которые возникли на Алеутских островах и Аляске во второй половине XVIII в., а затем были проданы США в 1867 г. Этнические миграции в этот период можно свести к трем основным разновидностям: 1) миграции русских и представителей других народов Российской империи на Алеутские острова и Аляску; 2) миграции местных зависимых туземцев под воздействием русских; 3) миграции независимых туземных групп. Двум первым вариантам миграций был присущ организованный и по преимуществу принудительный характер. Многочисленные исторические данные свидетельствуют о том, что в период Русской Америки возрос как масштаб этнических миграций, так и их интенсивность по сравнению с доконтактным периодом. В то же время результатом таких миграций стали очень существенные демографические потери ряда этносов и этнических групп, изменение традиционных этнических границ и формирование новых этнических общностей, а также очень значительные изменения в культуре ряда аляскинских народов.

Stephen M. Vantassel responds to two letters to the editor that criticized his article "Is Drowning Euthanasia". Stephen explains that his critics failed to distinguish between the facts and our feelings about the facts. This category mistake ultimately resulted in their shooting the messenger.

In this paper, the author explores the pivotal role of high-quality furs as both luxury commodities and diplomatic gifts within the extensive trade networks spanning the Baltic, Eastern Europe, and the Islamic world between the eighth and eleventh centuries AD. Furs, p articularly sable and beaver, were not only prized for their durability and aesthet ic appeal but were also prestigious items for exchange that transcended their utilitarian value. Focusing on the Volga Bulgars, Rus’, and Finno-Ugric communities, this study investigates the geopolitical signifi cance of the fur trade networks by analysing both the historical accounts and the archaeological evidence. Building on the approach of Matt hias Hardt, which gives equal weight to textual accounts and the material culture, this study illuminates the interplay between local acquisition strategies and long-distance exchanges. Finally, the author addresses the methodological challenges of tracing organic remains in the archaeological record and emphasizes the potential of interdisciplinary approaches that combine historical, archaeological, and scientifi c analyses.

A method is presented for establishing the relative economic positions of archaeological assemblages. Scales of economic means are independently derived from the archival and archaeological records of the Red River Settlement between 1830 and 1870 and are then tested for consistency of ranking. The results indicate that relative economic position can be observed on the basis of ceramic artifact assemblages alone, the beef cut results are not sufficiently robust, but a broader approach to faunal assemblages provides meaningful results. Persons or groups that are normally overlooked in historical documents , and sites or assemblages for which no written records exist, can then be included in discussions of economic variability on the basis of their ceramic assemblages. Such discussion leads to the possibility of establishing links between economic and social variability.

ABSTRACT: The paper examined dominant discourses in the debate about live animal transport and trade before reviewing trade figures from the UN Comtrade database. Between 1998 and 2015, the trade in cattle increased slightly, the trade in pigs increased by 76%, while the trade in poultry increased more than doubled. It is shown that an increased division of work is the driving force behind animal trade and that not even animal advocacy groups are effective in reducing the amount of trade. Largely independent of the ethical framework applied, in an environment that pays increasingly tribute to animal welfare, this is problematic. The paper concluded that animal trade results in externalities that should be internalized by governments.

In 1780, to commemorate his seventieth birthday, Emperor Qianlong invited Joseon envoys to Rehe and received them with exceptional honor. Two years later, in 1782, he further permitted their participation in the Outer Vassal Banquet held in Beijing, thereby enhancing the diplomatic ties between Qing and Joseon. However, such cordial treatment marked a sharp departure from the reception Joseon envoys had experienced during the earlier and middle years of Qianlong’s reign. Under King Yeongjo, Joseon envoys were typically allowed to meet the emperor only during the New Year’s Day audience and, on rare occasions, during the accompanying banquet. Even special envoys (byeolsa 別使), including those of royal lineage, found it difficult to gain an audience with the emperor due to Qianlong’s suspension of formal imperial summons (sogyeon 召見)―a practice that stood in stark contrast to the more frequent audiences held during the reign of Emperor Yongzheng. Following his accession, Qianlong gradually curtailed imperial summons not only for Joseon envoys but also for those from other tributary states. Instead, these envoys were permitted to meet the emperor by participating in domestic Qing rituals such as the New Year’s Day ceremonies, Zhiying (a ritual of receiving the emperor), or regular court audiences. This shift reflected Qianlong’s strategic focus on consolidating stability along Qing’s northwestern frontiers, particularly in managing relations with the Western Mongols and Central Asian polities. The relative neglect of Joseon and other tributary envoys during this time thus stemmed from diplomatic priorities rather than personal indifference. Notably, the preferential treatment accorded to Munansa envoys dispatched to Shenyang during Qianlong’s eastern tours suggests that Qing-Joseon relations in this period were more actively cultivated in Shenyang than in Beijing. Beginning in the 1770s, Qianlong began to expand his interactions with tributary envoys. After King Jeongjo's accession, Joseon envoys increasingly participated in Zhiying ceremonies, thereby gaining greater access to the emperor. This development can be interpreted as the convergence of Jeongjo’s proactive policy of serving the Qing and Qianlong’s efforts to strengthen ties with tributary states. During this period, even non-royal special envoys from Joseon were granted audiences with the emperor- a significant shift that signaled the gradual dissolution of Qing’s earlier policy of privileging only royal-lineage envoys, not only in Shenyang but also in Beijing.

1. A major hypothesis of life-history theory is that conditions of early development affect future survival and reproductive success. Responses to detrimental environments during early ontogeny may involve trade-offs between current and future fitness. Yet, the functional mechanisms involved in such evolutionary trade-offs remain poorly documented. 2. The physiological and behavioural ontogeny of diving abilities was examined in subantarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus tropicalis Gray) pups to assess whether the repeated extreme fasts they naturally endure throughout the period of maternal dependence impacts on their development. 3. The ontogeny of pup body oxygen storage capacity was slow, in particular for the muscle compartment, which shows limited increase in myoglobin content (0AE23-0AE85 g 100 g wet muscle )1 ). As a consequence, by the time of weaning, mass-specific oxygen stores had only reached 76%, 24% and 61% of adult female capacity for blood, muscle and total, respectively. Concomitantly, in marked contrast to other pinniped infants, they spent decreasing amounts of time in water (16-7%) with age and exhibited very little diving experience and skills. 4. Overall, in addition to experiencing the longest fasting durations throughout the maternal dependence period, subantarctic fur seal pups demonstrate the lowest levels of mass-specific total oxygen stores and maximum dive duration of any otariid near the age of weaning reported to date. 5. Furthermore, dives that exceeded the calculated aerobic dive limit occurred with a very low frequency (0AE04%), suggesting that behavioural limitations linked to the necessity to conserve energy to survive repeated fasting, rather than restricted oxygen storage capacity, constrained pup diving behaviour. 6. Hence, these animals appear to trade-off the early development of both their physiological and behavioural diving abilities in favour of body fat accumulation to survive the prolonged fasts they must endure and, potentially, provide a nutritional buffer while they locate appropriate food patches after weaning. While promoting pre-weaning survival, this strategy renders pups more vulnerable to unpredictable changes in environmental conditions and food availability at the transition to independent foraging and, thus, could have negative impact on post-weaning survival.

ThE conTEST aMong naTivES anD For-Eign naTionS For ThE BEring STraiT Fur TRADE. By John r. BockSTocE. Foreword by FELipE FErnÁnDEZ-arMESTo. new haven and London: Yale university press, 2009. iSBn 978-0-300-14921-0. xxi + 472 p., maps, b&w illus., notes, bib., index. hardbound. uS$35.00.

This study analyzes changes in the Qing emperor’s reception of tributary envoys from the accession of the Qianlong Emperor in 1735 to the period before 1780. During this time, Annamese and Ryukyu envoys, like the Winter Solstice envoys (冬至使) from Joseon, typically arrived at the end of the year and had the opportunity to pay homage to the emperor through the New Year’s Day ceremony. In the early years of his reign, Qianlong granted imperial summons (zhaojian 召見) to envoys from Ryukyu, Siam, and Sulu, recognizing the arduous maritime journeys they undertook to present tribute. In contrast, he did not extend the same privilege to envoys from overland tributary states such as Korea, Vietnam, Laos, and Burma, demonstrating a differentiated approach to the reception of tributary envoys.
After 1749, a new audience method called zhiying (祗迎) (ritual of receiving the emperor) was introduced, allowing envoys from Siam, Ryukyu, Laos, and Korea to pay homage to the emperor. Zhiying was originally a domestic ceremony in which Qing officials welcomed or bid farewell to the emperor’s carriage on the road when he departed or returned from an imperial tour or a ritual ceremony. However, as envoys from tributary states began to participate in this event, it replaced imperial summons and functioned as a method for receiving foreign envoys. With the Qianlong Emperor frequently embarking on imperial tours from the 1750s onward, zhiying became a convenient means to accommodate envoys who arrived outside the usual year-end schedule. However, zhiying did not convey the same level of imperial favor as imperial summons.
While Qianlong discontinued imperial summons for tributary envoys after his early reign, he actively granted them to Mongol princes and nobles, as well as emissaries from the Zunghar, Kazakh, Kokand, and other regions in Central Asia. This selective practice reflects the Qing Empire’s strategic prioritization of stability in Central Asia and the northwest frontier over relations with tributary states during this period. However, during the 1770s, the frequency of imperial audiences for tributary envoys increased, signaling a gradual shift in Qianlong’s diplomatic focus toward strengthening ties with tributary states.
By the 1780s, the reception of tributary envoys had significantly improved. Imperial banquets, which had previously been reserved for Mongol princes and nobles from the Outer Vassal States (waifan 外藩), were extended to tributary envoys. This allowed them to partake in imperial festivities, receive wine from the emperor, and be summoned before the throne to directly hear his words during the festivities. These developments indicate that, with the stabilization of the northwestern frontier, Qianlong increasingly sought to reinforce diplomatic relations with tributary states as part of his broader foreign policy strategy.

This report draws extensively from several voluminous primary sources, those listed in the bibliography by Marius Barbeau, William Beynon and Wilson Duff. These sources are an almost unique collection of information from the chiefs, matriarchs and elders of Northwest Coast First Nations. 1

During the Viking Age, Arctic Scandinavia was a source of exquisite furs, down, walrus ivory, and other commodities that met with high demand in England and on the Continent. Hitherto, the earliest firm evidence of this trade has been Ohthere’s account c. 890, but in light of this paper’s findings, its history may be pushed further back in time. Geological analyses of whetstones retrieved in eighth- to early ninth-century Ribe, south-western Jylland, in present-day western Denmark, demonstrate that the majority were quarried near the aristocratic manor Lade (‘loading/storing place’) in Trøndelag, present-day central Norway, some 1100 km by sea to the north. Because of their high numbers and durability, whetstones retrieved in Ribe and other urban sites may be regarded as a proxy for long-distance seaborne trade from the Arctic. The peak in this trade on the threshold of the Viking Age invites a reconsideration of the coinciding and conflicting interests of Scandinavian long-distance traders, kings, and Vikings. It is argued that coalitions and conflicts that arose from these interests, and new constraints and opportunities that emerged for these three types of agents, provide keys to understanding why and where Vikings raided overseas up to the mid-ninth century.

The current study deals with the responsum of R. Shimon ben Zemah Duran (Rashbatz, Algeria, 15th century), a Jewish halakhic adjudicator, on the trade in monkeys practiced by Algerian Jews in the middle ages. The basis of the discussion concerning the monkey trade is an ancient prohibition of the Mishna’s sages against trading in non-kosher animals. The current study clarifies the halakhic, historical and zoological circumstances underlying the missive sent to Rashbatz. In fact, R. Shimon ben Zemah Duran permitted trading in monkeys. He bases his ruling on ancient sources in rabbinical literature and states that this is not a new issue in the economic life of Algerian Jews and that his family also dealt in the monkey trade.

The current study deals with the responsum of R. Shimon ben Zemah Duran (Rashbatz, Algeria, 15th century), a Jewish halakhic adjudicator, on the trade in monkeys practiced by Algerian Jews in the middle ages. The basis of the discussion concerning the monkey trade is an ancient prohibition of the Mishna’s sages against trading in non-kosher animals. The current study clarifies the halakhic, historical and zoological circumstances underlying the missive sent to Rashbatz. In fact, R. Shimon ben Zemah Duran permitted trading in monkeys. He bases his ruling on ancient sources in rabbinical literature and states that this is not a new issue in the economic life of Algerian Jews and that his family also dealt in the monkey trade.

The identity of artists and localisation of workshops are rarely known with certainty before the mid-15th century. We investigated the material used by one of the most prolific and enigmatic medieval sculptors, the Master of the Rimini Altarpiece or Master of Rimini, active around 1420–40. The isotope fingerprints (Sr, S and O) of a representative corpus of masterpieces but also minor artworks, attributed to the Master of Rimini and his workshop, are virtually identical, demonstrating the unity of the corpus and a material evidence behind the stylistic and iconographic ascriptions. The material used is exclusively Franconian (N-Bavarian) alabaster, 600 km distant from the supposed zone of activity of the Master of Rimini workshop according to recent literature. The same material was later used by the prominent Late Medieval German carver Tilman Riemenschneider, active in Würzburg after 1483, whose small corpus of alabaster sculptures we have been able to characterize almost entirely...