Image of a bear shaped interior house post. This appears to be a house post that was transferred from Hope Island to the Museum of Anthropology in 1956.
Image of a cradle constructed largely using kerfs to bend a long board. This photograph may be from an exhibit at the old Museum of Anthropology dealing with Northwest coast technology.
View of what is now called the Bill Reid Rotunda. Instead of Raven and The First Men on display here, a Haida house frontal totem pole is on display. This pole was transferred to the Museum of Anthropology from Tanoo in 1954.
A display in the visible storage area of the Museum of Anthropology with a catalogue open on a table in front of it. This photograph was likely taken to demonstrate the new system where museum catalogues would be available to visitors in order to get information on the items on display. The display is on the southerwestern United States and features Pueblo and Hopi pottery and Kachina figures.
A display in the visible storage area of the Museum of Anthropology. The display is on the southerwestern United States and features Pueblo and Hopi pottery and Kachina figures.
Image of two old house posts on Hope Island, BC. The post on the right appears to be the same as a post now housed at the Museum of Anthropology, that was collected from Hope Island in 1956. Both posts feature a human figure with large eyes. On one post, the figure is holding a small face near its waist. On the other post, the figure is holding what appears to be an animal of some kind. The Museum of Anthropology's website provides the following description of the posts: "The posts of the unfinished house of Ha'm'cit were carved by a man from Smith Inlet called Si.wit who moved to Xu'mtaspi and married Tom Omhyid's mother. Ha'm'cit died before the house was finished. (Information provided to Prof. Wilson Duff by Mungo Martin). The artist's potlatch name was P'aczsmaxw. Wayne Suttles places the Xu'mtaspi village as Nahwitti, in historic times, however it was occupied jointly by the Nahwitti, the Yalhinuxw, and the Noqemqilisala (of Hanson Lagoon)."
Image of a section of a totem pole, featuring a beaver, on Anthony Island, Haida Gwaii. This appears to be a pole now housed at the Museum of Anthropology (museum item #A50013). This museum item has the following description: "Base section of a wooden totem pole, crescent shaped in cross section and carved in shallow and deep relief. Depicted is a seated beaver with one potlatch ring between erect ears; protruding upper incisors; raised forepaws and hind paws grasping chewing sticks. Below its rectangular shaped crosshatched tail is a human face with large circular eyes. Traces of blue in eye sockets and around nostrils... Beaver was one of crests owned by the lineage of Chief Ninstints (Tom Price), 'Those Born Up the Inlet', of the Eagle moiety... Remainder of pole, except top figure, burned when the village was burned in 1892 by the Koskimo and the crew of a sealing schooner. ."
Image of an old house post on Anthony Island, Haida Gwaii. This appears to the same as a post now housed at the Museum of Anthropology. This museum item is decribed as follows: "The lower section of a totem, crescent shaped in cross section, carved in shallow and deep relief. From top to bottom: bear with protruding tongue and raven on body, kneeling on head of unknown creature... Figures probably from historical narratives owned by lineages of house owner and wife. Grizzly bear was a crest of the lineages of the 'Striped Town People' and 'Sand Town People' of the Raven Moiety, to one of which the husband may have belonged. The supernatural Snag was also a crest of the 'Striped Town People'. Human arms of the raven or cormorant may indicate ability to transform from animal to human."
Image of a house post on Anthony Island, Haida Gwaii. This appears to be a post now housed at the Museum of Anthropology (museum item #A50016). This museum item is described as follows: "Totem, crescent shaped in cross section, carved in shallow and deep relief. From top to bottom: human with hands at right angles and fingertips touching. The arms are folded with the elbows resting on squared ears of figure below. Enclosed within this frame is a small human/hawk face with beak, surmounting the head, shoulders, and forepaws of an emerging bear cub. At the base is a bear from whose ears frogs look downward. The bear has curled nostrils; upturned mouth, raised forearms with five fingers folded over each palm, small human face between forearms... Stood at centre of back wall inside house called 'Raven House', belonging to the lineage of the'Sand Town People' of Raven moiety of Kunghit Haida. MacDonald lists it as house number 17... Pole standing when collected...Figures are crests belonging to the lineage of the owners of the house, the 'Sand Town People' of the Raven moiety. They may also refer to the Bear Mother myth."
