After 94 years, memorial pole stolen from BC's Nisg̱a'a Nation finally returns home
A 37-foot memorial pole stolen from the Nisg̱a’a Nation in BC is returning home after spending nearly a century at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.
The hand-carved memorial pole will be transported to Terrace, BC, where it will be driven in a family procession to the Nisg̱a’a Village of Lax̱g̱alts’ap in the Nass Valley. There, it will be housed at the Hli G̱oothl Wilp-Adoḵshl Nisg̱a’a — the Nisg̱a’a Museum.
A public arrival ceremony will be held at Hli G̱oothl Wilp-Adoḵshl Nisg̱a’a on Friday, September 29, where the pole will remain enclosed in a protective box. After the ceremony, a Nisg̱a’a feast will follow.
The memorial pole will make history as the first totem pole to be “rematriated” from the UK.
“The term ‘rematriation’ reframes the concept of “repatriation” by grounding the process of recovering belongings in Indigenous law — and is more closely in alignment with Nisg̱a’a matrilineal society,” National Museums Scotland (NMS) said in a press release.
Neil Hanna Photography | National Museums Scotland
The NMS said the memorial pole belongs to the House of Ni’isjoohl from the G̱anada (frog clan) in the Nisg̱a’a Nation. Its transfer was agreed upon last December.
“In 1860, House of Ni’isjoohl Matriarch Joanna Moody commissioned the pole to be carved by Nisg̱a’a master carver Oyee to honour her family member Ts’awit, who was next in line to be chief. Ts’awit was also a warrior who died protecting his family and nation,” it added.
According to Simon Fraser University, the pole was stolen in the summer of 1929 by Canadian colonial anthropologist Marius Barbeau, who “removed the pole from the Nisg̱a’a village of Ankida’a without consent and sold it to the Royal Scottish Museum (now National Museum of Scotland), where it has been housed since 1930.”
The NMS and the Nisg̱a’a Lisims Government have been working for months to bring the totem pole home. A closed spiritual ceremony was held on August 28 to prepare the pole for its long journey.
“In Nisg̱a’a culture, we believe that this pole is alive with the spirit of our ancestors. After nearly 100 years, we are finally able to bring our dear relative home to rest on Nisg̱a’a lands,” said Sim’oogit Ni’isjoohl, Chief Earl Stephens, who was part of Nisg̱a’a Lisims Government’s delegation at the ceremony.
“It means so much for us to have the Ni’isjoohl memorial pole returned to us so that we can connect our family, nation and our future generations with our living history.”
Member of the Scottish Parliament Angus Robertson said he was honoured to join the delegation at the museum to mark the return of the pole and is “pleased that Scotland is righting a historic wrong.”
Honoured to join the Nisga’a Nation delegation at the National Museum of Scotland to mark the return of their memorial pole. Am pleased that Scotland is righting a historic wrong. Looking forward to a new positive relationship between Nisga’a Nation and Scotland. pic.twitter.com/17PL5hnc8j
— Angus Robertson (@AngusRobertson) August 28, 2023
“We are grateful to collectively tell a new story that turns the colonial gaze onto itself by acknowledging the complexities of our pole’s theft, its intergenerational absence from our community and the persistence needed to ensure that justice for our ancestors prevails,” said Sigidimnak’ Noxs Ts’aawit, Dr. Amy Parent, a faculty member at Simon Fraser University.
In October, the pole will be raised and available for the public to view.
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