Totem Pole Item Number: 1959.275 from the MAA: University of Cambridge
Description
Expertly carved model totem pole which accurately reproduces details of the wooden poles, e.g. the hollowed out rear of the pole. The creatures depicted are a beaver at the top,wearing a skil property hat and holding what appears to be a portrait mask and the crosshatched beaver tail, and a bear below whose tongue joins the upside down body of a human.The pole has at one time been broken but has been repaired.; Good
Context
The original European tribal names and, where possible, current tribal names have both been given in separate GLT fields.; The style and subject matter of this object conforms to those of the Third Period of argillite carving, 1865-1910. The types of object are traditional objects, such as miniature bent boxes, standing figures of shaman, narrative totem poles, and mythic scenarios. The time period corresponds to when Haida culture was in disarray due to prolonged contact with European culture, and as a result the argillite carvings represent aspects of traditional culture which were previously denied to outsiders because their indigenous significance was waning. The carvers were producing an image of Haida culture in miniature that was indicative of the trade in ethnographic objects and the characterisation of Haida traditional culture in terms of the exotic other (G.Crowther). (The time periods of argillite carving are derived from Carol Sheehan' s Pipes That Won' t Smoke; Coal That Won' t Burn; Haida Sculpture in Argillite, 1981, Glenbow Museum: Calgary, and Peter Macnair and Alan Hoover' s The Magic Leaves, 1984, British Columbian Provincial Museum: Victoria.); Exhibited: CUMAA old exhibition, removed from display 20081986.
Item History
- Made in Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii), British Columbia, Canada
- Received from H. Doncaster during 1959
What
- Name
- Totem Pole
- Identification Number
- 1959.275
- Type of Item
- totem pole
- Material
- argillite
Who
- Culture
- Haida
- Received from
- H. Doncaster
Where
- Holding Institution
- MAA: University of Cambridge
- Made in
- Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii), British Columbia, Canada
When
- Acquisition Date
- during 1959
Other
- Keyword
- Art; Tourist Objects