Haida totem poles

Few people realise that totem pole sculpture has several styles, depending on the tribe. The two best documented styles are Kwakiutl and Haida. The Haida are the tribe that lives on what used to be called the Queen Charlotte Islands and is now officially called Haida Gwaii. During the epidemics of 19^th century some 90% of the tribe died out leaving deserted villages full of totem poles. In the humid climate of the islands the villages, including the poles, slowly disintegrated. However, in the 1950s some of those rotting totem poles were taken to museums, where they are kept in dry air to stop any further decay. They can be seen in the Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver and in the Haida Heritage Centre in the village of Skidagate at Haida Gwaii. They are well preserved there but one can also see the totem poles slowly rotting away in the deserted villages.

In the first half of the 20^th century the practice of totem pole carving almost disappeared. It was revived in the second half of the century due to the academic interest at first. In 1965 an art historian Bill Holm published a book about the totem pole carving and clearly identified features of each tribe style. Since then many poles in traditional styles have been produced. They can be seen in parks of many cities of British Columbia. Here, however, are the 19^th century originals preserved in museums. Only the last picture shows a pole left in its natural setting in the deserted village of Skedans.