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A carved wooden pole depicting a Canadian First Nations story, from the Cowichan region, British Columbia, and presented to Sydney on behalf of the people of Canada.
Temporary removal
We’ve removed the totem pole for detailed condition assessment.
Artist: Simon Charlie
Artwork description
The Western Red Cedar Totem Pole is 6m tall and features motifs representing a story from the traditional lands of the Coast Salish in British Columbia. A thunderbird is at the top, sitting above a whale with a face for a spout and then a bear with a fish in its mouth. The bear is holding a shield and sits on a dancing mask.
Carved from one log and painted, the artwork features a pair of wings attached at the top. It's set on a sandstone block and supported from behind by a steel girder which is bolted on.
The work was presented to the people of Sydney by Evan William Thistle Gill, the Canadian High Commissioner, on behalf of the government and people of Canada in 1964.
Artist
Simon Charlie (1906 or 1905–2005) known as Hwunumetse’ in his native Hul’q’umi’num’ language, was a renowned Coast Salish master carver and elder, and was named a recipient of the Order of Canada in 2003 for his contribution to education and preservation of his cultural heritage.
He received the National Centennial Medal in 1967 and the Order of British Columbia in 2001 for his carvings and other contributions.
His totem poles stand in the Royal B.C. Museum, the Parliament buildings in Ottawa, and locations in the State of Washington, New York, Chicago, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Australia, and his artwork and masks can be found in collections around the world.
