Mother and child - On Vancouver Island, detail of a totem pole erected in front of the house of Chief Mungo Martin, painter, sculptor and singer of the Kwakiutl Nation (1879-1962). Of great formal beauty, the totem carries the timeline of major family events (Thunderbird Park, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada). - 1985

Thunderbird Park in Victoria BC was established in 1941 when a display of totem poles from the Provincial Museum's collection was erected at the corner of Belleville and Douglas Streets. - A Haida totem pole in Thunderbird Park.

In 1952, anthropology curator Wilson Duff initiated a programme to restore the poles and hired Kwakwaka'wakw master carver Mungo Martin as chief carver for Thunderbird Park. - Detail of a Haida totem pole in Thunderbird Park - Victoria BC - Canada

Over the years, the original poles were moved to an indoor storage facility and replaced with replicas carved by Mungo Martin and others who worked under his direction. - Totem pole in Thunderbird Park - Victoria BC - Canada

Totem pole in Stanley Park - Vancouver BC - Canada

The Thunderbird House Post is an example of a carved house post. Such posts were used to support the huge roof beams of traditional First Nations cedar houses. - Stanley Park - Vancouver BC - Canada

This bear cub, which is probably sitting on the head of a larger bear, is a detail of a totem pole that was carved and raised around 1920. The totem pole stands in Friendly Cove. In 1929 a copy of it was presented to the then governor of Canada.

An old totem pole on the grounds of St Michael's Indian Residential School in Alert Bay, BC. It shows a thunderbird, grizzly bears and coopers at the base of the pole.

A visitor from Europe will be amazed to find a magnificent totem pole at the entrance to the Chose Manhatton Bank of New York in Tokyo, designed and carved by a Native American artist from the Gitksan tribe in British Columbia. Ken N. Mowatt, one of the West Coast's foremost sculptors, trained at the Northwest Coast Indian Art School in Hazelton. He uses the same material for his works as his ancestors on the Pacific, namely Virginia juniper, a tree whose wood is highly sought after for its resistance and resilience.

The 'Namgis Burial Grounds at Alert Bay is an old native cemetery and one of the few remaining locations on the BC coast where totems remain undisturbed on their original site.

This mortuary pole with Tsonoquoa and the thunderbird stands in the cemetery at Alert Bay. It is one of the masterpieces of Willie Seaweed, who carved it in 1931.

The grizzly bear, depicted here with a human figure between its legs, is a favorite subject of Kwakiutl artists. In 1980 this totem pole was still standing on Main Street in Alert Bay. Unfortunately, its present location is unknown.

This totem pole is located in the cemetery of Cape Mudge Village - BC - Canada

This 3.6 metre tall figure was carved from red cedar by Quatsino artist George Nelson in 1906 and served as an interior house post in a Koskimo-Kwakiutl house in Quatsino. It is an ancestor figure with a whale on the chest and coppers on the arms. The lower part with the two slave figures carrying a board probably served as a chief's seat. - Museum of Anthropology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver

Artist Tony Hunt explains a halibut motif on a new totem pole for his Kwakiutl community in Fort Rupert.

Ninstints is located on Anthony Island, one of the smallest and southernmost islands in the Queen Charlotte chain, and is home to the remains of the large wooden buildings, houses and totem poles of the Kunghit Haida people, who left the village at the end of the 19th century.

Ninstints is located on Anthony Island, one of the smallest and southernmost islands in the Queen Charlotte chain, and is home to the remains of the large wooden buildings, houses and totem poles of the Kunghit Haida people, who left the village at the end of the 19th century.

Up to the turn of the century, Ninstints was the main village of the Kunghit-Haida. Only a few decaying totem poles bear witness to the past importance of the community. It is still possible to see the hollows at the top of these five mortuary poles where the deceased person was placed behind a vertical plank. Thanks to old photographs, the figures on the poles are identifiable. On the first pole (moving from left to right) the wings of an eagle are visible, although the head has lost its beak. The fearsome jaws of a killer whale can be discerned on the second pole, and the third and fifth poles each has a bear carved on it.

On this detail of a fallen totem pole in Ninstints, a frog peers playfully from under the mighty tail fin of a killer whale. Around 1945, the delicately carved details on the frog's head - the large eyes and small nostrils - were still clearly visible. - Anthony Island - Queen Charlotte Island - BC - Canada

Depicted on another mortuary pole in Ninstints is a bear protecting a small child and lovingly licking the child's head. - Ninstints - Anthony Island - Queen Charlotte Island - BC - Canada

It is only possible to guess what the heraldic animal on this badly weathered totem pole at the edge of the forest might be. The two upper incisors tell us that it must be a beaver. A frog sits between his front legs. Barely recognizable between its hind legs with their clawed feet are the flat tail with typical crosshatching and a face. - Ninstints - Anthony Island - Queen Charlotte Island - BC - Canada

This ancient memorial post stands in Skidegate and is in danger of toppling. The base figure is a beaver with a bear cub between its ears.

A Totem Pole recarved by William Jefferey, standing in Roosevelt Park, Prince Rupert, B.C. Canada. This pole depicts a Grizzly Bear Mother with two cubs, as well as two other Grizzly Bear figures lower on the pole.

Only a few decayed totem poles remain of Skedans, located on Louise Island, southeast of Skidegate. An eagle on the mortuary pole is recognizable by its wing; its beak is missing.

The figure of a bear is vaguely visible on the remains of these mortuary poles. – Skedans - Louise Island

The figure of a bear is vaguely visible on the remains of these mortuary poles. – Skedans - Louise Island

In this image from Skedans, a killer whale on a mortuary pole is "biting" the trunk of a tree, while the figure above it, a bear, "grasps" a branch. The battle against nature appears to be hopeless.

The much-admired Kispiox totem poles stand in the grass at the edge of the community where the Kispiox and Skeena Rivers meet. There are approximately 24 totem poles that are privately owned by House Groups in the Kispiox Valley. Some date as far back as 1880.

The much-admired Kispiox totem poles, carved with figures of eagles, ravens, frogs, killer whales, bears, wolves and humans, commemorate the history of the house or family, show the ownership structure and provide an insight into the heritage of the Gitksan people.

The carved images on the posts serve multiple purposes: not only do they commemorate the history of the house/family and indicate ownership, but they also familiarise youth with their history and keep a part of their heritage alive. - Kispiox - BC - Canada

Eagle's head on a totem pole in Kispiox. The pole is more than 100 years old.

The new ceremonial house in Kitwancool and the mythical Will-a-daugh with her wood worm child on a replica of an old totem pole symbolize the Indian tradition.

«Hole in the Ice» Totem pole of the wolf clan of the Gitksan Tsimshian in Kitwancool. Using ladders, one climbed through the hole into the house. On the pole appears, in addition to three wolves, a bear with his entrails visible. The figures around the hole recall an ancestor who saved his people from starvation.

Four replicas of totem poles in Kitwancool: At far left is a totem pole of the frog clan with the ancestral mother and her frog children. The two poles to the right belong together and represent the wolf clan. The one to the left depicts Will-a-daugh with her wood worm children (see 42); after their death she changed herself into the mountain eagle Skim-sim.

The village of Kitwancool in British Columbia has one of the finest collections of totem poles in the Pacific Northwest.

As a reconstructed old village, ‘Ksan has many of the characteristics of a Gitxsan village from times long past. For example, the houses of ‘Ksan, like those of its predecessors, form a single row, with each building facing the river. The village's large decorated house fronts and totem poles are visible from the water. - The ‘Ksan open-air museum near Hazelton.

Replica of the Yaadaas totem pole, the original of which stood in the Haida village of Old Kasaan. This copy was carved in 1978 by the Tlingit artist Tommy Jimmie. At the top is the village watchman, followed by Raven Yel in both his human and animal forms. At the bottom is a crouching bear eating an unidentified animal. - Sitka National Historical Park, Sitka

Several totem poles of varying antiquity have been preserved in the Gitksan village of Kitwanga. They are reminders of the exhibitions which Tsimshian chiefs made of their social rank and power, with traditional iconography. From the left: The mountain lion totem pole is more than 140 years old (1987!) and shows, below the superimposed puma, alternately two wolves and two bears. The next is a wolf totem pole from 1895; in the middle, a female bear squats with two cubs at her feet. The subject is the mystical woman Xpisunt, who lived for a time among bears and bore twins who were half human and half bear. As the base figure, she is depicted in human form holding one of her children in her arms. On the next post, dating from 1942, one of her bear children is attached above the bear mother Xpisunt; her second child once sat on top of the pole. The myth of Xpisunt is continued in the totem pole at right, known as the Bear Pole. The brothers of Xpisunt killed her bear husband and brought her and the twins home. Her children helped set bear traps and, consequently, all of their descendants were successful bear hunters. The figure of a wolf is fastened to the top of this t Io-year-old pole; underneath it are Xpisunt and her twins, then two wolves and a bear. The fifth pole was erected in 1919. Its name is "On Which Raven Swung Himself Up," although Raven is missing from the pole and the figure of Axgawt has lost all of its original chiefly trappings, such as its copper plate.

On another house post in the bear clan house in Wrangell, a large anthropomorphic bear appears to be protecting the figure of a human being, while a frog peers out of its mouth.

This figure on a mortuary pole from the Kaigani village of Old Kasaan, Prince of Wales Island, represents the legendary shaman Stone Eagle, who could change himself into other beings. This totem pole now stands in the Totem Heritage Center, Ketchikan.

In his large studio next to Saxman Totem Park in Ketchikan, Nathan P. Jackson works on a new totem pole for a ceremonial house planned for the communitv. As with all Northwest Coast artists, his most important tool is the adze.

Bicentennial Pole
In 1976, the Sitka National Historical Park sponsored a totem design contest marking the nation’s US bicentennial. The ‘Tlingit Bicentennial Pole’ was carved by Duane Pasco. From bottom to top; before the arrival of Europeans, Raven and Eagle, arrival of Europeans with firearms, Native Americans today and future. Sitka, Alaska.

In 1976, on the occasion of the Bicentennial celebration in the United States, the artist Duane Pasco of Seattle won a competition in Sitka that resulted in a commission to create a "Bicentennial totem pole." This totem pole now stands in front of the Visitors' Center in Sitka National Historical Park. The base figure holding the halibut hook and the rattle represents the Northwest Coast Indian, who had a rich material culture and a magnificent ceremonial life before the arrival of white men.

The Yaxté kootéeyaa (Big Dipper Totem Pole) was carved in 1941 by Frank St Clair, a Tlingit and master carver from Hoonah. The Yaxté pole was damaged by an arson attack in 1993 and was restored by Arnold Dalton and reinstalled shortly afterwards. In 2010, the pole was taken down again for safety reasons after it had been badly damaged by the weather. Restoration work began in 2014 by Tlingit master carver Wayne Price from Haines. In 2015, the Yaxté kootéeyaa was reinstalled in Aanchgaltsóow, the old village of the Áak'w Kwáan. - Auke Bay, Juneau, Alaska

Totem Park, one of the outstanding attractions in Sitka National Historical Park, is home to a collection of Tlingit and Haida totem poles. Each tells a story and reflects the rich cultural heritage of these tribes. - Tlingit pole in front of the Park Visitor Centre

The White Man in the Land of the Wuckitan Tlingit. Detail of a totem pole from Nathan P. Jackson in front of Centennial Hall, created in 1981 for Juneau's Centennial celebration.

The Noow Hit tribal house in Haines, Alaska. It was begun in 1959 and dedicated in 1962. Noow is the Tlingit word for the safety of your home, Hit is the Tlingit word for house.
The picture shows the back with the 35 foot long friendship pole by Leo Jacobs and other Alaska Indian Arts carvers. The two back corner posts are the same, they have a chief with talking stick on top, a raven in the middle and a frog on the bottom. The back panel is a raven with a whale underneath. It was designed and painted by Nathan Jackson with the help of Tresham Gregg.

The traditional and the contemporaneous: Are the totem pole and the television antennae the symbols of modern life for Indian people? The answer is probably "yes," reflecting the ambiguous attitude of the residents of this house toward their native culture. Many native people find it difficult to be proud of their history and tradition. For 100 years they have been told that their traditional way of life is uncivilized and to distance themselves from it as fast and as completely as possible. It is not easy to reconcile today's white world with the valuable cultural elements of the past.