Exhibition

The model appeared at an exhibition entitled, ‘A Century-long Journey: the Ysyakh at the British Museum’, at the National Art Museum in Yakutsk. It was presented alongside other examples of Sakha mammoth-ivory carving, and the artefacts used at Ysyakh rituals. The exhibition ran from April 17 to September 27, 2015, and coincided with the Republic's Ysyakh celebrations in late June.

The exhibition's formal opening was on April 16, 2015. This event was televised, and widely covered in Sakha (Yakutia)'s newspapers, news websites and internet forums. Anyone could attend, and we were pleased to see a large and interested crowd of guests.

People have continued to visit the exhibition, and to express their interest in many different ways. For example, two art students have decided to create a second part for the model, for their final diploma project - and, in turn, a television programme was made about their work. People are especially interested in finding out who the model's author was, and his or her ethnic origin.

There has also been much debate about the accuracy of the model's representation. Some are struck by the author's attention to getting the details of the ritual right - while others have been surprised to see the figures sitting on benches, for example, instead of the floor.