A magnificent Haida totem pole, one of the oldest in Canada, is returning home to the Queen Charlotte Islands. But before its final journey across the mountains, the Jasper Raven Totem Pole will stop over in St. Albert for five days at the International Children’s Festival running June 1 to 5.
“The festival is the perfect place for it to be. We’re an international festival, a cultural festival and this represents the Haida nation. We’re honoured to have been chosen,” said festival director Nancy Abrahamson. “It tells the story of who we are. For us, we will learn a lot about our history and the people who made it.”
For 94 years, the Raven Totem Pole stood majestically next to Jasper’s railway station. Used to promote the national park as a tourist attraction, it was an important local landmark and reminder of the community’s early ties to the railway.
Unfortunately wind, weather, fungi, insects and plant life all contributed to the decay of the cedar pole. When the pole was assessed in June 2008, it revealed the bottom meter and top three meters were completely rotten. “It was beyond repair with no possibility of restoration. It became a safety issue and was taken down,” said Lori Dowling, Jasper totem pole project coordinator.
This meticulous carving was sculpted between 1870 and 1880 by Simeon Stiltae, a Haida chief in the old Massett area of the Queen Charlottes. The totem was a history or crest revealing a family’s lineage in the Raven clan. Additionally this totem depicts frog woman, grizzly bear mother, old woman and the eagle having strong ties to the raven clan.
The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway (which became the Canadian National Railway in the 1920s) opened a route to Prince Rupert and it acquired the pole as decorative feature in 1915. When Stiltae originally carved the pole, it stood about 18 to 21 meters (60 to 70 feet) in height.
However, since it arrived in Alberta, the bottom decayed over time. While in Jasper the totem pole underwent two moves and each time the bottom was cut. It now stands at 12 meters (40 feet) explained Dowling.
“The pole was taken down and put in storage and we decided to return it to the Haida. One of the things the Haida asked us to do was to remove the paint. Originally it wasn’t painted. The Grand Trunk painted the animals. They probably stood out more. But the Haida plan to return the pole to the forest and they didn’t want lead-based paint to compromise the process.”
Dowling added most cedar totem poles in British Columbia’s wet rainforest have a life span of about 60 to 80 years. But because of three factors – the cedar wood, Alberta’s drier climate and a protective lead paint coating – the totem pole survived 140 years.
In January 2010, the totem pole travelled to Vancouver where a professional conservator removed the paint. At the beginning of May, the pole began a final repatriation tour with a variety of educational and outreach stops throughout Alberta and British Columbia. It is scheduled to arrive at its home on June 21, which is National Aboriginal Day.
“We felt the tour was a good opportunity to share this beautiful old totem pole for one month before it’s returned to the Haida.”
The two-ton totem was loaded onto a flat bed truck. A specially made crate that looks like a “skinny barn with a huge beak” was then built around the totem. Once the pole arrives at the children’s festival on Monday, the crate’s walls are raised and visitors can view it in a horizontal position.
“When you see it laid out horizontally, you see how big the size is. When you realize it was carved 140 years ago with hand tools and the amount of work that went into it and you see all the nooks and crannies and contours, it’s beautiful.”
The totem pole will open for viewing in Millennium Park on Tuesday. Storyboards and an interpreter will be available to answer questions.
