Dance of the fisherman

The fisherman is carving a large cube of ice. It lifts easily without breaking and fits snugly against other cubes already lined up on the ground. Row upon row quickly follows until the dome-shaped refuge against the windand the cold is complete. Once inside his igloo, the fisherman pulls out his knife to carve a hole in the floor, and open a cherished gateway to the fish swimming below the ice.

It may take hours, but the patient fisherman is confident. His igloo is in a popular spot where Arctic char, whitefish and trout have been known to swim - and have sustained Inuit for millennia as they moved between land and sea, soil and ice to hunt and fish in harmony nature's seasons.

Not a movement. Not a sound. Not even a breath, it seems. The fisherman is utterly motionless; frozen solid with the knowledge that fish stay away from noise.

The stick twitches. Stillness shatters as the fisherman snaps his pole up and away from the ice in one jubilant sweep, thankful the sea has offered up yet another gift for life - today, just as it has for thousands of years past, and for generations to follow.

This coin is the second issue of the Contemporary Aboriginal Art collection.
The firstcoin of the series, released in June 2013, depicts the Mother and the baby ice fishing.
The second and the last coin of the series, released in October 2013, depicts the Father ice fisching.
 

CONTEMPORARY ABORIGINAL ART - FATHER ICE FISHING - 2013 CANADIAN COINS 02 is categorised COINS AND PAPER MONEY / 08- ROYAL CANADIAN MINT / 15- ART & CULTURE and sold by l'Imaginaire, a store and specialised website.