The Dene mukluk represents Dene Peoples and the broader Indigenous presence across the Northwest Territories, including Dene, Métis, and Inuit communities whose relationships to northern lands are shaped by mobility, seasonal knowledge, hunting, trapping, fishing, kinship, and governance. In the Moccasin Identifier collection, this mukluk is connected to Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, and Treaty 11, signed in 1921–1922.
This mukluk reflects northern design knowledge created for Arctic and subarctic temperatures. It is described as a two-piece, knee-high boot with either a hard or soft sole, made from smoked moose hide and caribou skin. Beaver fur around the calf, wool insulation lining, and exterior layers of duffle speak to the practical knowledge required for warmth, protection, and movement across northern lands.
Materially and artistically, this Dene mukluk carries both function and personal expression. The vamp and upper legging are decorated with Mountain Avens florals, with an embroidered pattern repeated around the top floral binding. Mukluk designs may also include colourful quillwork, beadwork, silk embroidery, or moose hair tufting, with the final style shaped by the maker, wearer, region, and purpose. In this way, the mukluk reflects both shared northern design traditions and individual identity.
This mukluk also teaches about Treaty 11, the last of the Numbered Treaties. Treaty 11 was signed beginning in 1921 and covers a large area across parts of present-day Northwest Territories, Yukon, and Nunavut. The Treaty Summary explains that the Numbered Treaties were made during a period of major change, as Canada expanded west and north, newcomers moved onto Indigenous lands, diseases affected many communities, and government interest in land and resources increased.
In the North, Treaty 11 was closely tied to growing resource interest, including oil prospects in the Mackenzie region. From a First Nations perspective, the Numbered Treaties were understood as sacred agreements to share the land and live peacefully together, not as the sale or surrender of land. Treaty discussions included ceremony and spoken promises, which carried deep meaning and responsibility. First Nations leaders were promised support such as food, medicine, schools, farming tools, and the continued ability to hunt, fish, and trap.
Many of these spoken promises were not fully reflected in written documents or were later broken, creating lasting harm and different understandings of what had been agreed to. For many Indigenous communities, Treaty 11 remains a living agreement connected to land, rights, resource sharing, governance, and responsibility.
For visitors today, this mukluk reminds us that Indigenous presence in the Northwest Territories is ancient and ongoing. Through its smoked moose hide, caribou skin, beaver fur, wool insulation, florals, and knee-high structure, the Dene mukluk reflects northern knowledge, resilience, self-determination, and enduring relationships to land. In the context of the Moccasin Identifier, it invites learners to understand Treaty 11 not only as a historical agreement, but as a living relationship rooted in land, movement, respect, and the importance of keeping promises.
This project has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada.
Ce projet a été rendu possible en partie grâce au gouvernement du Canada.
