Totem poles at Alert Bay, 1905 G-06448

The poles are carved from red cedar with stylized human and animal forms. The figures on the pole represent the ancestry of a particular individual or family, and usually each image has a story connected to it.

Different poles are created for different reasons. Among the Kwakwaka'wakw and Nuu-chah-nulth a tall slender pole with a bird like figure perched on top was traditionally placed by the house of the Chief. When the Chief of any family dies his heir is responsible for erecting a memorial pole which displays the crests and important events in the deceased's family. In older Haida villages it was common to have house portal poles which were built right into the front of the house, often with an oval doorway cut into the pole itself which acted as special entrance for certain ceremonies.

Totem poles at Kispiox I-21898

In pre-contact society, carvers of poles were valued as highly skilled artisans which enabled them at times to move beyond the strictly prescribed social ranking system of the coastal people.

Once a log had been selected and brought to the village it would be laid horizontally on the beach and the carver and his assistants would strip the bark and adze away the sapwood. While the individual commissioning the pole would request certain figures and their order, it was up to the carver to create the actual design and representation. The design was drawn on in charcoal and then worked with a variety of tools to produce relief figures that would then be painted. Traditional pigments were made by grinding minerals and then mixing the powder with salmon eggs.

Totem carving Thunderbird Park, Victoria, 1953 I-26783

Mungo Martin, carving the "tallest" totem, Thunderbird Park, Victoria, 1956 I-26790

Once the pole was complete it would be raised to an upright position in a special ceremony. A large hole excavated and many people in the village, (sometimes even one hundred people), would assist by carrying the pole to the hole. The base of the pole was placed in the hole and then some people pulled on ropes while others pushed with long poles, until the totem was fully upright. The meaning of the images and their stories were related to everyone attending the ceremony and the raising of the pole was followed with feasting and a potlatch.

Raven totem at Alert Bay H-07207

For a brief while after European contact, the art of carving flourished along the coast. The great expansion of wealth created by European trade made this possible. As well the increased use of iron tools made the carving of the poles somewhat easier. However, when European settlement began to change the traditional way of life and the coastal population declined, the custom began to fade.

In 1884 when the federal government outlawed potlatching it became increasingly rare for new poles to be carved. During the early part of this century many of the remaining poles were removed from their sites by collectors who sold the poles and other art works to museums around the world.

Haida Gwaii totem on display at the old B.C. Provincial Museum G-05051

During the 1950s however, there was renewed interest in carving the poles and a new generation of First Nations artists began to create these monuments again. Today the art of the Northwest Coast peoples is flourishing and is renowned throughout the world.

        

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