Field Trip by B.N. Gorodkov and G.M. Dmitirev-Sadovnikov to the Vakh River Valley in 1913

Field Trip by B.N. Gorodkov and G.M. Dmitirev-Sadovnikov to the Vakh River Valley in 1913

The present article describes a project run by the Tobolsk Provincial Museum. In 1913, B.N. Gorodkov and G.M. Dmitriev-Sadovnikov undertook an expedition to the Vakh River (the right tributary of the Ob). The results of their trip are refl ected in fi eld notes, a series of publications, and in a rich collection of photographs representing the natural landscape, everyday life and culture of the indigenous people and local Russian population living in the Vakh region. The photographs taken in the early 20th century illustrate many features of the traditional culture of the Vakh Khanty (Ostyaks) that no longer exist. As such, these photographic documents which are accompanied by detailed ethnographical descriptions are especially valued by contemporary ethnologists.

Keywords: Northwestern Siberia, the Vakh River, Ostyaks, B.N. Gorodkov, G.M. Dmitriev-Sadovnikov, ethnographic
research.