A totem pole taken from an Indigenous village on British Columbia's Central Coast more than 100 years ago is on its way home after a repatriation ceremony at the Royal B.C. Museum, where it had been on display.
The totem, which has been on display at the Royal B.C. Museum, will be placed on a truck Wednesday and followed by a convoy of vehicles on its way to Bella Coola, located almost 1,000 kilometres northwest of Vancouver.
Part of the ceremonies on Monday involved the transfer of the totem by museum and B.C. government officials to Victoria-area Songhees and Esquimalt Nations, who then transferred the pole back to the Nuxalk. Chief Deric Snow said the totem was carved by his great-grandfather Louie Snow in the mid-1800s as an entrance pole to a longhouse and later was designated as a grave marker for a member of his family.Snow said his great-grandfather's spirit remains inside the totem and it will not be at rest until it is returned to its home in Bella Coola.
Schooner said the totem pole is a symbol of the culture and traditions of her people and bringing it home is a historic moment.
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