Chief Wakas Totem Pole in Stanley Park, Vancouver, BC, Canada
The Chief Wakas Totem Pole is a very unique totem pole at Stanley Park. The original was placed at the entrance to Chief Wakas's house and had a raven's body painted on the house so you would enter via the raven's mouth. This must have been so spectacular.
CHIEF WAKAS POLE
IN KWAKWAKA'WAKW (KWAKIUTL) CEREMONIES, CARVED staffs called talking sticks are held by people making important speeches on behalf of a chief. This pole represents the talking stick and characters in an Owikeno story belonging to Chief Wakas. The original pole was raised in front of Chief Wakas' house in Alert Bay in the 1890s. The raven's beak opened to form a ceremonial entrance to the house, while the raven's body was painted on the house front. Nimpkish artist Doug Cranmer, who has inherited Chief Wakas' crests, carved this new pole in 1987.The caption of the photo is: Chief Wakas' house in Alert Bay, ca. 1910.
The top of the totem pole is the Thunderbird, then below that the Killer Whale, then below that the Wolf, then below that the Wise One, then below that Huxwhukw: a mythical bird, then below that Bear, then below that Raven.
Photos
Where is the Chief Wakas Totem Pole in Stanley Park?
The Chief Wakas Totem Pole is located with many other Totem Poles in a display area at Brockton Point in Stanley Park, Vancouver, BC, Canada.