First Peoples Gallery
For countless generations people have prospered in the land we know as British Columbia. This gallery gives visitors dramatic glimpses of First Nations cultures before and after the arrival of Europeans.
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These Kwakwaka'wakw ceremonial masks were made by Chief Nakap'ankam, Mungo Martin. They represent raven, huxwhukw and Crooked-Beak, the bird attendants of Baxwbakwalanuxwsiwe', the Cannibal-of-the-North-End-of-the-World.
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You are privileged to enter the house of Chief Kwakwabalasami, Jonathan Hunt, a Kwakwaka'wakw chief from Tsaxis (Fort Rupert). His son, Henry Hunt, and grandsons, Tony Hunt and Richard Hunt, created the house and carvings for the exhibit. The family maintains the ceremonial rights to the house.
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In this gallery, the Haida artist, Bill Reid, describes the effects of the devastating smallpox epidemic of 1862 in a moving tribute to the strength of First Nations people and their cultures.
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