Totem poles are a distinctive feature of Northwest coast Native culture. Cedar logs are carved with representations of supernatural beings and spiritual aspects of animals and humans.
Travel was by canoes over water during traditional times on the Northwest Coast. Villages were located along rivers or by the ocean. Totem poles faced the water and travellers could read them. Poles told the stories of the people there. Native People travelled and traded widely. Marriages were alliances that brought access to goods from other areas. Poles were like address markers or directories. Northern Totem Poles are like documents recording family histories, genealogies and registering property in an oral culture. Cultural property is intertwined with physical.
