It was beautiful, moving, inspiring and brought together people from many nations; the raising of Jasper’s new Two Brothers Totem Pole was a historic celebration.

On July 16, in line with Parks Day, Aboriginal groups from far and wide, community members and visitors to the park participated in the raising of the Two Brothers Totem Pole and the celebration of regional Aboriginal culture in Jasper National Park. The new pole replaces the Jasper Raven Totem Pole, which stood in Jasper National Park for 94 years.

To honour the event, Parks Canada also published The Two Brothers - A Haida Story. The book is illustrated by carvers Jaalen and Gwaai Edenshaw, and tells the Haida story behind the Two Brothers Totem Pole. The story of the Two Brothers was told to Jaalen and Gwaai by their grandmother Diane Brown. Both the book and the totem pole tell the story of two Haida brothers who, out of curiosity and a spirit of adventure, travelled long ago from Haida Gwaii to the Rocky Mountains. The book is being published in Haida, English and French. 

According to a release from Parks Canada, an Aboriginal Cultural Steering Committee, comprising members from the Upper Athabasca Valley Elders Council, the Jasper Aboriginal Forum and Council of the Haida Nation, was formed to guide Parks Canada in determining appropriate cultural protocols for the pole raising ceremony and associated local and regional Aboriginal events. The celebration fused West Coast Haida culture with local Aboriginal traditions and included the totem pole transfer ceremony, a friendship ceremony, the totem pole raising, a traditional feast and a round dance. 

The Edenshaw brothers decided to create the carving together – even though they normally work as independent artists. Together they created the Two Brothers story and carved it into what is believed to be a 600-year-old cedar tree from Haida Gwaii. The Edenshaw brothers and their apprentice Tyler York worked for a year on the pole before it began its journey to Jasper on June 21, National Aboriginal Day.

The finishing touches to the carving were added in Jasper National Park during the Carvers in Residence public education program in the first week of July. A carving shed was set up on the Jasper National Park Information Centre lawn and served as an opportunity for people to meet the artists and learn about the carving process.

In the semi-traditional ceremonies on July 16, more than a hundred people pulled together on haul ropes to hoist the new icon into place. The figures on the Two Brothers Totem Pole are as follows:

On the very top is a brother. He sits looking out over this land. The next figure is the raven, iconic as ambassador for the Haida. The raven’s tail feathers hold the face of the young daughter. The next figure is the mountain goat, fundamentally representative of the Rocky Mountains. One of the brothers rests between its knees. The bottom figure is a grizzly bear holding a dragonfly in its hands.

On behalf of the Honourable Peter Kent, Canada’s environment minister and minister responsible for Parks Canada, the Honourable Rob Merrifield, MP for Yellowhead, participated in the raising of the Two Brothers Totem Pole and the celebration of regional Aboriginal culture in Jasper National Park. 

“The Jasper Raven Totem Pole was an important Canadian icon, beloved by both Jasper residents and visitors for close to 100 years,” said Merrifield at the event. “Today, we celebrate the raising of a new Haida totem pole in Jasper National Park – a new icon which recognizes Canada’s Aboriginal cultural heritage and the commitment to building strong Aboriginal relations in Canada’s national parks.”

In a recent statement, Minister Kent said that the traditional knowledge and experience that has been integrated in the carving of the new Haida totem pole represents the timeless values that will help present and future generations of Canadians to connect with national parks, national historic sites and national marine conservation areas. 

The Two Brothers Totem Pole is located about 20 meters east of the place where the Jasper Raven Totem Pole once stood. The finished totem pole is approximately 45 ft. tall (13.7 metres) and painted in traditional Haida colours of red, black and blue.