This small baleen seiner with ivory anchor, made with materials from sea mammals, depicts a modern purse seiner fitted with a skiff. Opheim’s model shows not only Kodiak fishing activities in a modern vessel, but also reflects the well-known Alaska Native tradition of model boat building. Baleen is made from keratin, the same protein that makes human hair and fingernails, and it is found in whales’ mouths. Baleen plates hang down from the upper jaw of the whale, and the whale uses them to filter krill from the water. Alaska Native peoples have been hunting whales and using their baleen for thousands of years. Baleen was used to make buckets, cups, and other containers as well as ice scoops, sled runners, fishing line, lashing, and nets. Today, people use it to make jewelry, models, and baskets.