History of totem poles

_Elsa_

Tiffi really enjoys learning the history for her adventures so she types in history of totem poles and finds an interesting article.

‘From their earliest origins to today, totem poles hold a significant socio-cultural role in many First Nations communities. Most First Nations commemorate the raising of a totem with a totem pole raising ceremony, which is often held concurrently with a feast or potlatch. At these ceremonies, the significance of the pole and stories of the crests are told, and visitors witness the events, including the right of a family’s claim to the crests depicted.  As totem poles may be erected to commemorate the life of a chief or may be commissioned to celebrate an important milestone or event, the reason for the pole’s creation is shared and celebrated in such ceremonies.

For many years in the history of British Columbia, the presence of totem poles in the province came under threat by non-Aboriginal settlers who predominantly viewed the poles as paganistic, and an impediment to colonial efforts to Christianize and “civilize” First Nations people. Colonial officials attempted to assimilate Aboriginal peoples by banning cultural expressions and practices, such as the potlatch in 1884, based on the expectation that Aboriginal peoples would then adopt Christian traditions. Along with the outlawing of ceremonies, thousands of items, such as ceremonial regalia, were forcibly taken from Aboriginal peoples and sent to museums and private collectors throughout North America and Western Europe. This included totem poles. Much of this discriminatory legislation was not repealed until 1951, although the relocation and repatriation of stolen materials is ongoing.

In 1872, Chief G’psgolox commissioned artists Hemzid and Wakas to carve a pole in memory of the chief’s deceased wife and children. Starting in the early 1920s, the federal government adopted a policy of salvage anthropology and, fearing the decline of Indigenous art, began to buy out totem poles from communities living along the Skeena River. In 1927, Iver Fougner, an Indian Agent in Bella Coola, wrote to the Department of Indian Affairs asking permission for the Swedish Consul of British Columbia to purchase the G’psgolox Pole.16 One day in 1929, the pole was severed and taken from the Haisla village of Misk’usa while the villagers were away on a fishing trip.  The pole was then shipped to Sweden, where it remained in storage until 1980, when it was finally put on display at the national Museum of Ethnography in Stockholm.’ (Source)

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Start at the beginning – Let’s build a totem pole!