Mammoth Tusk Hunter, Siberia

Photograph by Evgenia Arbugaeva, National Geographic

Siberian hunter Slava Dolbaev uses a spear to dig out a corkscrewed mammoth tusk from a coastal ice cliff. Prying loose a single tusk can take hours, even days. Tusk hunters often leave colored beads or silver jewelry as offerings to local spirits.

Go behind the lens with Evgenia Arbugaeva » Explore 125 years of National Geographic »