Haida Totem Pole

Haida Totem Pole. Gift of Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw. , [Left column Haida Totem Pole, top to bottom] , Black-finned Whale , Eagle , Raven , Beaver, The Fenimore Art Museum is home to the Eugene and Clare Thaw Collection of American Indian Art, one of the most renowned collections of American Indian art in the world. These objects are the best of their kind, milestones of creativity that stand on their own as exemplary works of art. This totem pole, commissioned by the Thaws from Haida artist Reg Davidson and given to the museum in 2010, is the largest artwork in the collection., For this commission, Davidson chose a 30' tall, 4' wide cedar totem pole to tell the story of of the Raven stealing the Beavers' house. The main figures on this pole, from the bottom, are: the Beaver holding a stick, with his checkered tail turned up in front of him; the Raven holding the Beaver's house in his long bill; the hooked beak Eagle, a main Haida family crest; topped by the Black-finned Whale - one of the artist's crests. Small secondary figures, the spirits of the animals made visible, are seen at the bottom and in between the main figures. In the traditional Haida story, the Raven (a notorious trickster) steals the Beavers' house, lake and fish trap and teaches the Haida people how to catch fish., Totem poles have a long tradition and may be one of the most widely recognized art forms from the Northwest Coast. Totem poles traditionally were memorial markers or symbols of clan and family wealth and prestige, and were often funerary containers. The imagery carved into a totem pole may recount clan lineages, notable events or, as in this case, a familiar legend., Background image: Masset village by Edward Dossetter, 1881, [Left photo caption] The Eugene and Clare Thaw Gallery of American Indian Art at the Fenimore Art Museum., [Right photo caption] Artist Reg Davidson with a large carved mask, 2010.