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Port of Call |
LAST UPDATE July 12, 2005
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| June 23-24, 2004 |
Vancouver, Canada – Cultural Exchange with a First Nations "Mothers and Grandmothers" Group |
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| Totem poles welcome Peace Boat participants to the First Nations Mothers and Grandmothers group |
Totem poles welcome Peace Boat participants to the First Nations Mothers and Grandmothers group
Reconstructed on the grounds of the Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver, the traditional longhouses of the Haida people are built to be strong enough to withstand the storms that torment the northwest coastline of Canada. Admiring the huge beams of red cedar, and the elaborately carved totem poles that tower nearly twenty metres tall, Peace Boat participants were welcomed into the traditional home by representatives of some of the 197 different First Nations peoples in British Columbia. |
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| Explaining the traditional symbols of family history and clan identity carved into the twenty metre high totem poles |
Totem poles tell a story of family history, and were also used as a marker and symbol of a particular clan or tribe. Originally raised at settlement feasts, the totem poles in the museum were erected in the 1960s, carved by the famous First Nations artist, Bill Reed. Until European Missionaries in 1800s persuaded First Nations people to bury their dead, many communities placed the bodies of their chiefs in boxes on the very tops of the poles, honouring the importance of their lives by lifting them to the sky. |
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| The importance of keeping alive First Nations crafts is shared with a Peace Boat participant |
Inside the longhouse, participants listened to the sounds of the First Nations "Mothers and Grandmothers" group sing a "Feast Song." Dancing to the beat of hand-held drums, the women picked out participants to join them in the welcome song. Each First Nations clan has a particular crest, and though many of the women wore similar clothes made from caribou and moose hide, the killer whale, eagle and bear symbolized their separate communities. After an explanation of the traditional clothes, the women performed a motherhood dance, tenderly passing a doll between them to show the love and care of all community members when a baby is born. For one month after the birth, the women of the nation would share the load of childcare, enabling the mother to rest. |
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| Singing and dancing a farewell blessing, the Mothers and Grandmothers group say goodbye |
Keeping alive the vibrant artistic traditions of First Nations peoples is vital to maintaining their identity and culture. The crafts workshop, organised by the Mothers and Grandmothers group, shared with the Peace Boat participants the precious knowledge and skills of making a caribou hide bag and pine branch dream catcher. Participants threaded colourful beads, which traditionally would have been dyed porcupine spines, onto their bags and dream catchers, impressing the women of the Mothers and Grandmothers group with their creative efforts and attention to detail. |
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| A sculpture of the Raven creation story in the Museum of Anthropology |
Before singing a traditional farewell song, the Mothers and Grandmothers group presented both the oldest male and female members of the study tour with a special gift. The elders in a First Nations community are highly respected, and the offerings are way of thanking them for visiting. Facing all four directions of the compass, to bless peace upon the participants wherever in the world they may be, the women then sang and walked back into the longhouse for a final goodbye. Participants returned the farewell thanks with a song expressing the love of a homeland, and hoped that the cause of protecting First Nations culture and identity would continue with such exchanges. |
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| For more information on the Museum of Anthropology and its efforts to foster understanding and respect for First Nations peoples, visit www.moa.ubc.ca |
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