Canadian totem

Canadian totem
Pacific Northwest style totem pole in a urban park
The totem pole in 2017
ArtistMungo Martin
Year1962
Mediumred cedar
Location

The Canadian totem (Spanish: Tótem canadiense) is a totem pole in Chapultepec in Mexico City. Designed by Kwakwakaʼwakw carver Mungo Martin, it was given to Mexico by the Canadian government in the 1960s to celebrate the 150th year of Mexican independence. The pole depicts four figures: a Thunderbird, a sea otter, Sisiutl, and Cedar Man. One of the last projects Martin worked on before his death in 1962, the totem pole was carved by Tony Hunt, Henry Hunt, and Eugene Hunt.

The totem pole underwent restoration in 2014 to mark the 70th anniversary of Canada–Mexico relations.

Description and location

Carved face in Northwest coast-style art; face has white eyes surrounded by a band of green, prominent black eyebrows and lines over circles on his cheeks, large red lips and nostrils.
Face of the Cedar Man

Brightly coloured, the totem pole is made from red cedar and stands 11 metres (37 ft) tall. It is located in the first section of Chapultepec, a city park in Mexico City, by the Calzada del Rey and behind the Quebradora gate (Spanish: puerta Quebradora).

The totem pole depicts, from top to bottom, a Thunderbird, a sea otter, the double-headed serpent Sisiutl, and Cedar Man. The presence of the sea otter was to represent the connections between Mexico and British Columbia that were formed when the Spanish were exploring the Northwest Coast. According to the Canadian ambassador in 2014, the black, green, red, white, and yellow colours featured on the pole were traditional in Kwakwakaʼwakw art. In 2014, after the pole was repaired, the conservator announced that he planned to re-install it facing east, "in a kind of new start in its story".

History

Black and bronze plaque on a wrought iron fence. Reads:"AL PUEBLO DE MEXICO, EN NOMBRE DEL GOBIERNO Y DEL PUEBLO DEL CANADA, CON MOTIVO DEL 150 ANIVERSARIO DE SU INDEPENDENCIA. 16 de Septiembre de 1960."
Plaque near the base of the pole explaining its history

The totem pole was commissioned by Howard Charles Green, the secretary of state for external affairs, on behalf of the Canadian federal government as a gift to Mexico in honour of the country's 150th anniversary of independence. In charge of design was Kwakwakaʼwakw carver Mungo Martin; the pole was carved in 1961 at Thunderbird Park with assistance from Tony Hunt Sr., Henry Hunt, and Eugene Hunt. Tony Hunt later disputed the involvement of the other men, maintaining that, though the pole was designed by his grandfather, Martin, Tony Hunt had been the sole carver on the project. It was one of the last major projects Martin worked on before his death in 1962.

Upon completion, the totem pole was taken from British Columbia to Acapulco by ship, then taken by road to the Chapultepec city park. It was officially presented to Mexico by Canadian ambassador William Arthur Irwin on 18 October 1962, two months after Martin's death. Irwin spoke at the ceremony, discussing the connections between indigenous Mexican and Canadian art. He stated that though "Canadian Indigenous art never reached the heights of craftsmanship and aesthetic excellence achieved by the pre-Hispanic civilizations of Mexico", he found "there were certain affinities between the two cultures". Hundreds of people attended the ceremony in Chapultepec, Canadian and Mexican alike, as well as officials such as Indian diplomat P.L. Bhandari, British ambassador Peter Garran, and José Gorostiza. A mariachi band played the Canadian and Mexican national anthems.

Two men painting the top of a totem pole, which is lying down in a white marquee tent
The Thunderbird being restored

In the 21st century, a Canadian resident married to a Mexican woman noticed that the totem pole had begun to deteriorate and contacted the Canadian government. The totem pole was assessed in November 2013 and taken down the following May for six weeks of repairs. It was cleaned, capped, treated for pests, and repainted; the area around the pole underwent additional renovations. The repairs, done to mark the 70th anniversary of Canadian–Mexican relations, were led by the Canadian Embassy in Mexico City in collaboration with the Mexican government. The project was funded by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Mexico and Canadian companies and cost over 748,000 pesos. The pole was restored by a Mexican restorer and a Canadian conservator who had repaired other totem poles. They were assisted by two Kwakwaka’wakw carvers.

Eight people in formalwear on a stage in a park with the Canadian, Mexican, and City of Mexico Flags. Behind them is the totem pole.
2014 rededication ceremony

Tony Hunt, who was only invited to consult and not to contribute to the restoration efforts, criticized the repairs. He felt that his lack of involvement, without the tools Martin had made, was insulting to both him and Martin, and described the decision as akin to "sending a carpenter to repaint the Mona Lisa".

The rededication ceremony was held on 23 October 2014, led by the head of government of Mexico City, Miguel Ángel Mancera. He spoke about Canada–Mexico relations alongside Canadian diplomat Sara Hradecky and Mexico City's environment secretary, Tanya Müller.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ The Cedar Man, who is also depicted on Martin's memorial totem pole, has been described by Richard Hunt as "the spirit of the cedar tree personified".
  2. ↑ Spanish: "en una especie de nuevo inicio en su historia"

Sources

  1. 1 2 3 "Conoce la historia del tótem canadiense del Bosque de Chapultepec". El Heraldo de México (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 11 December 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Weber, David (28 October 1962). "Totem Pole Gift Marks Mexican Independence". The Waco News-Tribune. p. 14. Retrieved 19 May 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Smart, Amy (6 April 2014). "High anxiety: Totem angst, from Victoria to Mexico City". Times Colonist. Archived from the original on 19 May 2026. Retrieved 19 May 2026.
  4. ↑ "Canadian Totem". Pro Bosque Chapultepec. Retrieved 19 May 2026.
  5. ↑ Stewart, Hilary (1993). Looking at Totem Poles. Douglas & McIntyre and University of Washington Press. p. 114-115.
  6. 1 2 3 "BC Totem Pole, Gift to Mexico". Nanaimo Daily News. The Canadian Press. 25 February 1961. p. 4. Retrieved 19 May 2026.
  7. ↑ "Gift From A Chief". Dixon Evening Telegraph. Associated Press. 18 February 1963. p. 2. Retrieved 19 May 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Destaca embajadora canadiense restauración de tótem de Chapultepec". Notimex. 30 January 2015. ProQuest 1649682056
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 López, Karla (14 July 2014). "Un regalo para México". Reforma. ProQuest 1544767872 (in Spanish)
  10. ↑ McMaster, Gerald R. "Mungo Martin". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 24 February 2025. Retrieved 19 May 2026.
  11. 1 2 "Totem Pole Given to Mexico". Star-Phoenix. Associated Press. 19 October 1962. p. 14. Retrieved 19 May 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Kyle, Flora (21 December 1962). "Mexico 'Home' For B.C Pole". The Vancouver Sun. p. 62. Retrieved 19 May 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. 1 2 Pazos, Francisco (26 October 2014). "Reinauguran Tótem Canadiense en Chapultepec". Excélsior (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 11 November 2014. Retrieved 19 May 2026.
  14. ↑ "El Tótem del Bosque de Chapultepec: símbolo de la amistad entre Canadá y México". Government of Canada (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 13 July 2017.

19°25′06″N 99°11′22″W / 19.41831°N 99.18934°W / 19.41831; -99.18934