Totem Poles: An Illustrated Guide

by Marjorie M. Halpin

Overview

The massive wood carvings unique to the Indian peoples of the Northwest Coast arouse a sense of wonder in all who see them. This guide helps the reader to understand and enjoy the form and meaning of totem poles and other sculptures. The author describes the origin and place of totem poles in Indian culture – as ancestral emblems, as expressions of wealth and power, as ceremonial objects, as mythological symbols, and as magnificent artistic works of the people of the Pacific Northwest.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780774801416
Publisher:	University of British Columbia Press
Publication date:	01/01/1981
Series:	Museum Note Series , #3
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	64
Product dimensions:	(w) x (h) x 0.20(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Marjorie Halpin was a U.S.-Canadian anthropologist best known for her work on Northwest Coast art and culture, especially the Tsimshian and Gitksan peoples. She earned an M.A. from George Washington University in 1963. She worked for five years for the Smithsonian Institution. In 1968 she moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, to begin doctoral work at the University of British Columbia, where she worked closely under the anthropologist Wilson Duff.

Table of Contents

Foreword

Introduction

Indian Cultures of the Northwest Coast

Wealth

Family

Mythology

Ceremony

Carving

What is a Totem Pole?

Totemism

Totem Poles

Totem Pole Types

The Antiquity of Totem Poles

Totem Poles Today

Contemporary Sculpture

The Raven and the First Men

Suggestions on How to Look at Totem Poles

1 The Skill of the Carver

2 Recognizing Life Forms

3 Differences in Cultural Styles

List of Totem Poles and Other Large Sculptures on Display in the U.B.C. Museum of Anthropology and on its Grounds

Suggested Reading

Photographic Credits