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Open to collaborate - cultural institution notice
Our institution is committed to the development of new modes of collaboration, engagement, and partnership with Indigenous peoples for the care and stewardship of past and future heritage collections.

Terms of use
The Bill Reid Centre's digital image archive is the digital version of a research collection first assembled by Dr. George MacDonald and his wife Joanne MacDonald over their long careers in Canadian museology, archaeology, and anthropology. The archive represents the MacDonalds' deep respect for the cultures of the Northwest Coast, their connections to numerous communities along the coast, as well as their relationships with museums, archives, friends and colleagues. These images are made available here for research and educational purposes. Other uses may require permission; users are responsible for contacting copyright holders to obtain such permission.

George and Joanne MacDonald Northwest Coast Image Archive

Pages

: Mortuary and Frontal Pole; Mortuary pole and frontal pole of House #4 at Cumshewa.

: Cumshewa Village; Left to right, Sky House, Hair Seal House, and House that Makes a Great Noise.

: Chief's House; Chief's House.

: Sky House Poles; Totem poles associated with Sky House.

: Cumshewa Mortuary; Mortuary poles associated with Hair Seal House .

: Tanu Village Panorama; The houses and their poles at the south end of the village.

: Detail: Frontal Pole Base; A detail of the House That Makes a Great Noise (like a deep sounding whistle) frontal pole base. The base figure is a killer whale with a small face in the blowhole and a tall dorsal fin above its head

: Western Cumshewa; Left to right: #1 Whale House, unfinished and unnamed house (House #2 - pole only), #3 Shaking House, Mortuary 4X and House #4.

: Eastern Cumshewa; From left to right: #5 house owned by Chief Kotlass, #6 Someone Lies Against It House, #7 (in front of 6) Greasy Whole House, and (far right) #9 unnamed house.

: Whale House; Whale House, which was abandoned at the death of the house chief. The frontal pole is leaning and is being propped up with a small pole.

: Haina Village; Locals and visitors pose in front of houses and monuments.

: Yan Panorama; Looking north from the Killer Whale House at the south end of the village.

: Hummingbird Memorial; A group of people posing by a tall memorial for the Flicker House with an eagle at the top, followed by nine potlatch cylinders, and a hummingbird, one of his major crests, at the base.

: Killer Whale House; The frame of the Killer Whale House with frontal pole still attached. Through the frame you can see a couple of memorial poles that are associated with the house, and attached to the corner posts are carved raven figures.

: Monuments at Xaina Village; Monuments lined up in front of the houses at Xaina.

: Totem Poles and Monuments; Monuments lining the beach at Xaina.

: Haina Houses; Houses and totem poles at Xaina.

: Haina Village; Group of men standing in front of a plank house. The entry pole to the house is being buttressed by a long pole.

: House and Slope; Image showing the steep slope behind the village of Haina. An entry pole and plank house are in the foreground.

: House Row; Houses and poles along the beach.

: Sculpin Mortuary; Mortuary plaque representing a sculpin.

: Kayang Panorama; Looking north along the house row at Kayang village.

: Mountain House; Shown here is the Mountain House and its frontal pole. The crest figures from the top are: a grizzly bear, a raven and a supernatural snag that is eating a frog. There is a ceremonial entrance through the stomach of the snag.

: Xaina House Row; View of the village of Xaina with the mortuary of the House Passers-by Always Looked Up At in the foreground. This mortuary featured a raven with four potlatch cylinders and a frontal plaque with a carved sculpin. The tall memorial has a raven at the top with a blanket in its beak.

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George and Joanne MacDonald Northwest Coast Image Archive

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