Page 236 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Pacific Northwest

234  V ANC OUVER

9 Museum of Anthropology

Founded in 1947, this outstanding museum houses one
of the world’s finest collections of Northwest Coast First
Nations peoples’ art. Designed by Canadian architect
Arthur Erickson in 1976, the museum is housed in a
stunning building overlooking mountains and sea. The tall
posts and huge windows of the Great Hall were inspired
by the post-and-beam architecture of Haida houses and
are a fitting home for a display of monumental totem
poles, canoes, and feast dishes. Through the windows of
the Great Hall, the visitor can see the magnificent outdoor . The Great Hall
sculpture complex, which includes two houses designed The imposing glass and concrete
by contemporary Haida artist Bill Reid. structure of the Great Hall is the
perfect setting for totem poles,
canoes, and sculptures.
Carved Figures
These figures are on
houseboards that were
once displayed in the
interior of a First Nations
family house. Carved
from cedar planks, the
style is typical of Coast
Salish sculpture.

Outdoor Haida Houses and Totem Poles
Set overlooking the water, these two Haida houses and
collection of totem poles are faithful to the artistic tradition
of the Haida of the Pacific Northwest, including the Nisga’a,
Gitxsan, and Kwak-waka’wakw. Animals and mythic creatures
representing various
clans are carved in
cedar on these poles
and houses, made
between 1959 and
1963 by Vancouver’s
renowned modern
Haida artist Bill Reid
and Namgis artist
Doug Cranmer.
Carved red cedar totem poles

Museum Guide
The museum’s collections are on
one level. The Ramp leads to the
Great Hall, which features the
cultures of Northwest Coast First Ceramic Jug
Nations peoples. The Multiversity This beautifully decorated jug was
Galleries contain artifacts from made in Central Europe in 1674
around the world, and a range of by members of the Anabaptist
16th- to 19th-century European religious sect. The foliage motifs
ceramics is housed in the Koerner are in contrast to the freely sketched
European Ceramics Gallery. animals that run around the base.
For hotels and restaurants see p290 and pp302–3

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