Note 17 — Chapter XLVI · THE GILYAKS.

Among the Gilyaks the head is kept by the patriarch of the village, and prayers are said to be offered to it for the space of a week. I was told at Nikolaefsk that the Gilyaks often bring bears’ skins to sell; but by no chance do they bring, or can they be induced to bring, a hide with the head or paws attached. The ears, jaw-bones, skull, and paws are sometimes hung upon trees to ward off evil spirits. Occasionally the skull is split, and suspended in their houses; and Mr. Knox observed in a Goldi house that part of one wall was covered with bear skulls and bones, horse-hair, wooden idols, and pieces of colored cloth.