Snow goggles

{{Short description|Eye protection of the Inuit}}

File:Inuit snow goggles.jpg antler with caribou sinew for a strap]]

File:Inuit Snow goggles from Alaska. Made from carved wood, 1880-1890CE (top) and Caribou antler 1000-1800 CE (bottom).jpg. Made from carved wood, 1880–1890 (top) and Caribou antler 1000–1800 (bottom)]]

Snow goggles (Inuktitut: {{lang|iu-Latn|ilgaak}} or {{lang|iu-Latn|iggaak}}, syllabics: ᐃᓪᒑᒃ or ᐃᒡᒑᒃ;[http://www.livingdictionary.com/term/viewTerm.jsp?term=52781578516 Asuilaak Living Dictionary - snow goggles] {{langx|esu|nigaugek}}, {{lang|esu|nigauget}}) are a type of eyewear traditionally used by the Inuit and the Yupik peoples of the Arctic to prevent snow blindness.[https://web.archive.org/web/20070314111555/http://www.vancouvermaritimemuseum.com/modules/vmmuseum/treasures/?artifactid=77 Inuit Snow Goggles] at the Vancouver Maritime Museum

The goggles are traditionally made of driftwood (especially spruce), bone, walrus ivory, caribou antler, or in some cases seashore grass.{{cite web |url=http://www.yupikscience.org/7gathering/7-2a.html |title=Things Made from Grass}} The workpiece is carved to fit the wearer's face, and one or more narrow horizontal slits are carved through the front.Smithsonian Institution, [http://alaska.si.edu/record.asp?id=327 St. Lawrence Island Yupik Snow Goggles] The goggles fit tightly against the face so that the only light entering is through the slits, and soot is sometimes applied to the inside to help cut down on glare.{{cite web |url=http://www.sciencebuzz.org/museum/object/2007_12_snowgoggles |title=Snow goggles helped Arctic people survive |date=December 2007}}{{cite web |publisher=Smithsonian Institution |url=http://alaska.si.edu/record.asp?id=550 |title=Yup'ik Snow Goggles}} The slits are made narrow not only to reduce the amount of light entering but also to improve the visual acuity. Wider slits result in a larger field of view.