THE KWAKIUTL TOTEM POLE and ITS SYMBOLIC VALUE Redacted for Privacy Abstract Approved: (John A
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March, 2019, 2017 Janiceyfn Members Webster Honouredattended the for Offi Work Cial in Port Alberni Ground Breaking for Fraser River Page 3 the Traverse Trail
Briefl y 1 Volume 9,7, IssueIssue 11 || FebruaryMarch, 2019, 2017 JaniceYFN members Webster honouredattended the for offi work cial in Port Alberni ground breaking for Fraser River Page 3 the Traverse Trail... Sockeye is New Totem Pole WIll Page 3 ours! Promote Our Language ast November, the Maa-nulth people new Language Revolution Language Revitalization To- sea, wind and stars. There is Lreceived great news when Totem Pole has been com- tem Pole will be gifted to the also an eleventh relative that the courts ruled they will have missioned by the First Na- University of Victoria where it will be depicted on the pole: ongoing access to Fraser RiverAtions Education Foundation (FNEF) will stand, with the blessing earthquake, which is sent to Sockeye Salmon. and will be carved by renowned and support of the Esquimalt teach humility and remind hu- Larry Johnson,, NCNNCN SeafoodSeafoodNuu-chah-nulth carver Tim Paul, and Songhees First Nations, in man beings of the all-encom- Development Corporationsays Yuułuʔiłʔath Government recognition of the University’s passing power of the Creator. President, says the ruling notPresident and FNEF volunteer “Oral history, songs, dances, only gives Maa-nulth FirstChief Executive Officer. ceremony, and art were – and Work is progress- The totem pole is being “Oral history, songs, continue to be – the vehicle Nation access to fish outside ing on the The of its traditional territory, butmade in recognition of the dances, ceremony for transmitting history, know- itit setssets thethe stagestage forfor thethe secondsecondUnited Nations’ International ledge, and sovereign rights ʔapsčiik t̓ašii pro- Year of Indigenous Languages from generation to genera- LEO Network inin aa two-parttwo-part disputedispute thatthat and art were - and will draw attention to the tion,” said Paul. -
Totem Poles Raised in Courtyard of the Point Hotel
In This Issue PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE Page 2 Saving the Port Gamble Forest PAID Page 6 Point Hotel Artist Profiles Silverdale, WA Page 9 Kyle Loescher Wins World Series Permit # 111 THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE PORT GAMBLE S’KLALLAM TRIBE | WWW.PGST.NSN.US | 360-297-2646 | NOVEMBER 2016 Raising History: Malynn Wilbur-Foster watches her totem pole raised in the courtyard of the new Point Hotel. All of the artists took months to design and carve their pieces at their individual workshops and then transported their work to The Point Hotel for installation. Totem Poles Raised in Courtyard of The Point Hotel Totems from Native artists from around Washington State are installed in advance of November 20 Port Gamble S'Klallam Community Grand Opening On November 20, Port Gamble S'Klallam community members The artists, their work, and the stories behind them, include: and their families will be among the first to experience the brand- new Point Hotel. David Boxley Tsimshian Tribe The day begins at 11 a.m. with a celebration that will include a A Tribute to the S'Klallam brunch reception, tours, dedications, and a night's stay for 40 lucky This 12’ totem depicts a S’Klallam ancestor riding a killer whale folks who won the raffle at October's General Council meeting. atop a thunderbird in human form. All this is in advance of the Hotel's public Grand Opening, which is planned for Friday, November 25. The Point Hotel is currently The inspiration for David’s work comes from his ancestors of taking reservations for December 1 and after. -
What Is a Totem Pole?
What is a totem pole? A totem is an emblem of A totem pole is a monument a family or clan. This of a single log of red cedar that emblem can feature a is carved by First Nations natural object, an animal peoples of the Pacific Northwest or a spirit being. Coast. A pole includes an arrangement of several totems. What is it used for? A totem pole can be used for different purposes: to welcome visitors, as a memorial for important members of the tribe, as a tomb Sisiutl, a double-headed or headstone, to celebrate a special occasion, serpent, one of the many crests of the Hunt family. or as a supporting column inside houses. What figures are displayed on a totem pole? A totem pole typically features symbolic and stylized human, animal, and supernatural forms. They are visual representations of family stories and ancestry. Families acquire the rights to display specific figures, or crests, over many generations. These Henry Hunt totem pole crests can be acquired through supernatural encounters that Photo by Mark Davidson, 2019 ancestors had and were handed down to their descendants, through marriage, or in a potlatch. A potlatch was a ceremony to mark important life events, including the new use of a family crest. Some common figures are: Human figures Sky elements Animals of the forest and mountains Chief Sun, moon Bear, wolf Sea beings Sky beings Supernatural Seal, whale, salmon Eagle, raven, owl Thunderbird, Sisiutl (double-headed serpent) How are they designed? Figures are characterized by two elements: Formline Basic colors A combination of thin and thick Black - Used for the formline lines that help to divide figures Red – Adds detail and structure the design. -
Media Images
MEDIA IMAGES High-res images of 81 works in the Royal BC Museum Google Art Project available on request. All images and content at: http://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/project/art-project Media contact: Royal BC Museum Media Inquiries, 250-387-3207 or [email protected] Raven and Whale Photograph © Royal BC Museum, BC Archives. Chief Nakaṕankam, Mungo Martin, Raven and Whale, 1960. Watercolour on paper. RBCM14429 Chief Nakaṕankam, Mungo Martin, was born about 1881 in the Kwagu’ł village of Tsaxis (Fort Rupert) on the east coast of Vancouver Island. He was raised in the traditional culture of his people and was an expert carver and singer. In 1947, he was hired by the University of British Columbia Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver to restore and replicate totem poles in their collection. In 1952, when he was about 72 years old, he moved to Victoria on Vancouver Island to be Chief Carver on staff at the British Columbia Provincial Museum (now the Royal BC Museum), where he created more than two dozen poles and built Wawadiťła, a version of a traditional Kwakwaka’wakw bighouse, in Thunderbird Park. For the opening of Wawadiťła in 1953, Martin gave the first legal potlatch after the law against potlatching was dropped from the Indian Act in 1951. Wawadiťła continues to be used for First Nations events with the permission of Martin’s grandson. Poles carved by Mungo Martin at the Royal BC Museum are now in Athens, Mexico City, London and many other world cities. Martin died on August 16, 1962. Hundreds of people came to pay their respects when the Chief lay in state in Wawadiťła. -
JACK DAVY Worked for the British and Horniman Museums Before
DOI BIO: JACK DAVY worked for the British and Horniman museums before earning a PhD from University College London, where he studied miniature artifacts from the Northwest Coast of the United States and Canada. He is currently a senior research assistant at the University of East Anglia for Beyond the Spectacle: Native North American Presence in Britain, a three- year project funded by the United Kingdom Arts and Humanities Research Council. The “Idiot Sticks”: Kwakwaka’wakw Carving and Cultural Resistance in Commercial Art Production on the Northwest Coast Jack Davy Between 1884 and 1951 a ban on potlatching prohibited Indigenous communities of British Columbia from practicing traditional economic, ceremonial, and political activities, restricting them to state-sanctioned gatherings and celebrations. Unable to perform traditional dances and wear the associated regalia, Native artistic practices, in particular carving, began to fall into disuse as demand dried up. Restricted to only a few artistic forms permitted by local authorities, carvers turned to the growing tourist market, a field dominated by non- Native dealers but also disdained by government as inauthentic and thus, ostensibly non- threatening. Among art forms most popular with the Kwakwaka’wakw people of Vancouver Island and the corresponding British Columbia coast were model totem poles, which have often been overlooked as facile souvenir art and even sometimes derided as “idiot sticks.” In reality, however, drawing from both historical accounts and contemporary interviews with Kwakwaka’wakw carvers, this article demonstrates that these model totem poles were a subversive method of Indigenous defiance of Canadian authority. Carvers satirically enacted resistance through these model poles, not only mocking those who would presume to judge without knowledge, but in preserving information for future generations, could ensure the survival of traditional designs and techniques and register protest at their treatment by non-Native government and society. -
Tlingit Tote
After 88 years in Greeley, a campus icon will return home The story of how the the Native American Graves Bear Clan Totem, which Protection and Repatriation generations of UNC stu- Tlingit Tote ... Act, enacted by Congress in dents called Totem Teddy, 1990. disappeared from its home The university will honor in Angoon, Alaska, is lost the claim, says UNC in the mists of time. Some President Kay Norton, who say a smallpox epidemic became involved when she early in the 20th century was the institution's general forced the Tlingit Indians to counsel. abandon their village. When "It's absolutely the right they later returned, the thing to do ," Norton says. totem was gone. Others "The totem is clearly an suggest that profiteers spir important cultural and spiri ited it away in the middle tual artifact to the Tlingits, of the night. and that is where it This much we know is belongs." true - it arrived in Greeley Over the years, Totem on the back of a trailer Teddy has had several shortly before Christmas in homes on campus. Its most 1914. Alumnus Andrew recent is in the atrium in the Thompson, then superinten University Center. It was a dant of schools in the south touchstone for generations eastern district of Alaska, of university students, who shipped the totem to his used it as a gathering place alma mater as a gift, perhaps and celebrated it as a point as the start of a museum col of pride. During the early lection. Contemporary 1960s after then-President reports are vague on the William Ross had details of how Thompson sequestered the totem in came by it. -
Some Totem Poles Around Juneau Can You Find These Poles? Check Them Off When You’Ve Seen Them! Downtown
Some Totem Poles around Juneau Can you find these poles? Check them off when you’ve seen them! Downtown Four Story Totem Location: Outside Juneau-Douglas City Museum, Fourth and Main Streets Carver: Haida carver John Wallace of Hydaburg, 1940. Harnessing the Atom Totem Location: Outside Juneau-Douglas City Museum, Calhoun and Main Streets Carver: Tlingit master carver Amos Wallace of Juneau, 1967, installed 1976 The Wasgo Totem Pole or Old Witch Totem Location: State Office Building, Main lobby, Eighth Floor, Fourth and Calhoun Streets Carver: Haida carver Dwight Wallace, 1880, installed 1977 Friendship Totem Location: Juneau Courthouse Lobby, on Fourth Street between Main and Seward Carver: Tlingit carver Leo Jacobs of Haines, in association with carvers from the Alaska Indian Arts Inc. of Port Chilkoot, mid-1960s. The Family Location: Capital School Playground, Seward and 6th Streets Carver: Tlingit artist Michael L. Beasley, 1996 Box of Daylight and Eagle/Bear Totems Location: Sealaska Corp. Building, One Sealaska Plaza Carver: Box of Daylight: Tlingit carvers Nathan Jackson and Steven Brown, 1984. Eagle/ Bear: Haida artist Warren Peele,1984. Raven and Tl'anax'eet'ák'w (Wealth Bringer) Totem Location; Mount Roberts Tramway, 490 S. Franklin St. Carver: Tlingit carver Stephen Jackson of Ketchikan, raised in 2000 Aak'w Tribe Totem Location: Juneau Douglas High School commons, 1639 Glacier Ave. Carver: Tlingit carver Nathan Jackson, with the assistance of Steven C. Brown, 1980-81 Legends and Beliefs, Creation of Killer Whale and Strongman Totems Location: Goldbelt Place, 801 10th St. Carvers: Tlingit carvers Ray Peck and Jim Marks, 1981 Raven and Eagle Totem Location: Federal building lobby, 709 W. -
Totem Poles of Alert Bay Located Near BC Ferry Terminal Was Carved by Chief Doug Cranmer in the What Is a Totem Pole? 19 Early 1970’S
19 Pole-Eagle, Killer Whale located at current ‘Namgis Burial Grounds carved by Don Svanvik Bert Svanvik, Sean Whonnock, Johnathan Henderson in 2005. Memorial for Grandparents 25 Gideon and Edith Whonnock 20 Sisiyutl ‘Namgis Welcome Archway Totem Poles of Alert Bay located near BC Ferry Terminal was by Chief Doug Cranmer in the What is a Totem Pole? carved 19 early 1970’s. Relocated summer 2000 Totem poles are primarily visual statements about the ceremonial privileges and from Port Hardy when gifted by Finning identity of those who erected them. The figures represented on totem poles are Tractor to the ‘Namgis First Nation. those beings from mythical times who became, or were encountered by, the ancestors of the group that later took them as crests. For instance, some Kwakwaka'wakw families claim as a crest the Thunderbird, who descended 20 from the sky and took off his regalia and became their human ancestor. Others claim crests on the basis of encounters their ancestors had with supernatural 21 Pole-Thunderbird, Man holding beings. The erection of a totem pole would usually be celebrated by a potlatch. At this time, the stories pertaining to the crests they displayed were shown, and Copper, ‘Namxxelagiyu located near the rights of the family to claim the privileges were publicly witnessed. ‘Namgis First Nation Office carved Especially important totem poles were those raised in honour of Chiefs by their by Stephen Bruce in 2000 21 successors. When a totem pole was commissioned, the artist was told which 22 23 crest it was to show, but there is considerable evidence that he was given some degree of freedom as to how he chose to portray them. -
Native American Totem Poles
Native American Totem Poles Totem poles are sculptures carved from large trees, such as the Western Red Cedar. In North America, totem poles are part of the cultures of many indigenous people – the people who first lived in America before Europeans arrived a few hundred years ago. Totem poles serve many purposes beyond their beauty, and their meanings are as varied as the cultures that make them. There are many types of totem poles. Some totem poles represent stories or important events. On these poles, each figure on the totem represents part of a story. Other totem poles are put in front of a family's home to represent the owner's family or social status. Memorial poles are carved in honour of a family member who has passed away. Another interesting type of totem pole is the shame pole. Shame poles are carved to embarrass and ridicule someone who has done something wrong. Shame poles are taken down once the person has made up for what they did . A famous shame pole erected in Cordova, Alaska, included the face of an oil company businessman. It is said to represent the unpaid debt the oil company owes for damages caused by the oil spill in Valdez, Alaska. Colours used to paint totem poles were limited. Artists relied on natural ingredients and colours. Black was the most common, made by grinding soot, graphite or charcoal. Red came from red ochre, a clay-like material. Common figures found on totem poles include the raven (a symbol of The Creator), the eagle (representing peace and friendship), the killer whale (a symbol of strength), the thunderbird, the beaver, the bear, the wolf and the frog. -
PROVINCIAL MUSEUM of NATURAL HISTORY and ANTHROPOLOGY
PROVINCE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PROVINCIAL MUSEUM of NATURAL HISTORY and ANTHROPOLOGY REPORT FOR THE YEAR 1953 VICTORIA, B.C. Printed by DoN McDIARMID, Printer to the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty 1954 To His Honour CLARENCE WALLACE, C.B.E., Lieutenant-Governor of the Province of British Columbia. MAY IT PLEASE YouR HoNouR: The undersigned respectfully submits herewith the Annual Report of the Provincial Museum of Natural History and Anthropology for the year 1953. R. W. BONNER, Minister of Education. Office of the Minister of Education, March, 1954. PROVINCIAL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY AND ANTHROPOLOGY, VICTORIA, B.C., March 5th, 1954. The Honourable R. W. Bonner, Q.C., B.A., LL.B., Minister of Education, Victoria, B.C. SIR,-The undersigned respectfully submits herewith a report of the activities of the Provincial Museum of Natural History and Anthropology for the calendar year 1953. I have the honour to be, Sir, Your obedient servant, G. CLIFFORD CARL, Director. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION The Honourable R. W. BoNNER, Q.C., B.A., LL.B., Minister. H. L. CAMPBELL, B.A., M.Ed., Deputy Minister and Superintendent. PROVINCIAL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY AND ANTHROPOLOGY Staff: G. CLIFFORD CARL, Ph.D., Director. GEORGE A. HARDY, Botanist and Entomologist (to August 31st). CHARLES J. GUIGUET, M.A., Biologist. WILSON DUFF, M.A. , Anthropologist. WILLIAM A. HuBBARD, M.A., Botanist (from September 8th). FRANK L. BEEBE, Illustrator and Museum Assistant. MARGARET CRUMMY, B.A., Senior Stenographer. BETTY C. NEWTON, Artist. SHEILA Y. DAVIES, Clerk. MARY ELEANORE WHEELDON, Clerk. E. J. MAXWELL, Attendant. J. MoFFAT, Relief Attendant. -
Flags, Totem Bodies, and the Mean- Ings of 9/11: a Durkheimian Tour of a September 11Th Ceremony at the Flight 93 Chapel
FLAGS, TOTEM BODIES, AND THE MEAN- INGS OF 9/11: A DURKHEIMIAN TOUR OF A SEPTEMBER 11TH CEREMONY AT THE FLIGHT 93 CHAPEL ALEXANDER RILEY Abstract. Some four miles as the crow flies from the site at which United 93, which was the fourth plane involved in the 9/11/2001 terrorist attack on the United States, struck ground, there sits a small chapel dedicated to the passen- gers and crew. The Thunder on the Mountain Chapel is considerably less well known than the Parks Department memorial a few hundred yards from the crash site, but it is, arguably at least, equally important in the cultural production of the Flight 93 myth. This article draws from Durkheim’s The Elementary Forms of Religious Life as well as other theoretical sources to look closely at the chapel. I argue that what is going on at the Chapel contributes to a totemic myth that turns the American flag into a representation of the dead national hero and then places the totem object into the beliefs and rituals of an American civil religion. Keywords: Durkheim, culture, civil religion, cultural sociology Résumé. Quelque six kilomètres du site où le quatrième avion impliqué dans l’attaque de l’onze septembre, United 93, s’est écrasé, il existe une petite cha- pelle consacré aux passagers. La Chapelle “Tonnerre sur la Montagne” est beau- coup moins connu que le mémorial official situé quelques centaines de mètres du lieu de l’accident, mais il est sans doute au moins aussi important dans la produc- tion de la mythologie culturelle de l’United 93. -
Totem Poles of Alert Bay Carved by Chief Doug Cranmer in the What Is a Totem Pole?
19 Pole-Eagle, Killer Whale located at No t on site current ‘Namgis Burial Grounds carved by Don Svanvik, Bert Svanvik, Sean Whonnock, Johnathan Henderson in 2005. 25 Memorial for Grandparents Gideon and Edith Whonnock 20 Sisiyutł ‘Namgis Welcome Archway 21 located near BC Ferry Terminal was Totem Poles of Alert Bay carved by Chief Doug Cranmer in the What is a Totem Pole? early 1970’s. Relocated summer 2000 19 Totem poles are primarily visual statements about the ceremonial privileges and from Port Hardy when gifted by Finning identity of those who erected them. The figures represented on totem poles are Tractor to the ‘Namgis First Nation. those beings from mythical times who became, or were encountered by, the ancestors of the group that later took them as crests. For instance, some 23 Kwakwaka'wakw families claim as a crest the Thunderbird, who descended 20 from the sky and took off his regalia and became their human ancestor. Others 22 claim crests on the basis of encounters their ancestors had with supernatural 21 Pole-Thunderbird, Man holding Copper, Namxiyalagiyu located near ‘Namgis First Nation Office carved by Stephen beings. The erection of a totem pole would usually be celebrated by a potlatch. Bruce in 2000. No longer on site. At this time, the stories pertaining to the crests they displayed were shown, and the rights of the family to claim the privileges were publicly witnessed. 22 Pole-Chief holding Copper above his head, Dzunuk̓wa, Especially important totem poles were those raised in honour of Chiefs by their located at the U’mista Cultural Centre carved by Stephen successors.