Yellow Cedar wood, Abalone shell

49.75 x 6 x 4.5″

51 x 8.25 x 7.5″ (with base)

This story belongs to the HAISLA IKSDUQ’IYA (Eagle Clan) and was a peace offering from the Haida Eagle chief, GITWUN. This gift signaled the end of the early Haida raids, and retaliations by the HAISLA. The HAISLA IKSDUQ’IYA (Eagle) HEY-MAS (chief) was given all the rights associated with the CHILLAKOONS story, in which 3 young men mistreated a supernatural KWEE-KWEE-NAUCH (frog) while they fished for GO-LEES-TEE (trout) in a stream. They threw a KWEE-KWEE-NAUCH into a fire and its supernatural mother — Volcano Woman — put a curse on them causing them to die, one by one, as they paddled back to their home. Soon afterwards the entire village was destroyed by fire. Only a young girl survived and, via inter-marriage and gift-giving, her story (and its rights) were passed down through the ages. The full story is longer and the Haida apparently also refer to the story as “The Volcano Woman” because she caused the volcano’s eruption.

The first CHILLAKOONS GLA-GLA-QWIL-SALA (totem pole) was actually carved by GITWUN’s Haida, and towed to C’IMOTSA (KITAMAAT); it rotted away long ago. It was replaced by a HAISLA copy that stood at KITAMAAT until, it became too damaged by a house fire and had to be taken down in the 1900’s. During my high school years another “copy” was made by Bobby Stewart — all three totem poles were stylistically-simple, On top was a supernatural figure (wearing a segmented a hat); below was a MOO-MOO-GA-JOO (halibut) and on the bottom was a KWEE-KWEE-NAUCH.

My version is inclusive of the original story, but also expands it. On top, the volcano woman is holding a talking stick carved with the original, simple version of the CHILAKOONS totem-pole, but also she is standing in front of an erupting volcano.

Below her, a Haida HEY-MAS mourns the loss of his son and the destruction caused by that great fire — he’s wearing a MOO-MOO-GA-JOO frontlet on a cedar-bark headband with ermine pelts on the side; his tears run down his cheeks. The three young men who were fatally cursed by the Volcano Woman are shown in the old-style GELWA (canoe), just below the chief’s hands.

Below the GELWA is a GO-LEES-TEE swimming in a stylized stream emptying into an equally stylized, horizontal, wavy AH-AH-WAUCH (ocean). At the bottom is a KWEE-KWA-NAUCH with it’s tongue stretched out and it’s being consumed by fire.

In those olden days, the Haida people often ambushed the HAISLA — all raids took place when the HAISLA lived up the GICH-LAA-LEES-LA (Kitimat River). So NUGWA decided to expand the CHILLAKOONS saga. The Haida attempted a series of raids; one where the HAISLA defeated the Haida raiders and the survivors were made to run a gauntlet, shoot all their arrows at a rock bluff situated near the head of the KITAMAAT salt-water channel. Their arrows shattered against the rock bluff and that event is symbolized by a broken arrow the mourning Haida HEY-MAS holds in his hands.

Another raid took place at SUMGAS creek, a tributary approximately a mile up the GICH-LAA-LEES-LA. Further upriver, the HAISLA posted a watchman on a high bluff called NANAKILA. In those early times there were no giant evergreen trees as there were in later; only small brush so a lookout could see down to the mouth of GICH-LAA-LEES-LA. A path allowed the lookout to run down to the HAISLA GYUU-AUCH (bighouses) — situated just inside the junction of the river and tributary — to give ample warning of danger. An additional tactic was a strong, rock-weighted rope that was sunk across the SUMGAS tributary. Because SUMGAS creek was close enough to the AH-AH-WAUCH (ocean), its high tide affected SUMGAS creek by making it deeper; this too was part of the HAISLA defense tactic because the large Haida GELWA could only access SUMGAS creek during a high tide.

So, as expected, the Haida GELWA came up the GICH-LAA-LEES-LA at high tide and paddled into the SUMGAS tributary, trying for a surprise attack on the HAISLA GYUU-AUCH. Unbeknownst to them, was that the forewarned HAISLA had already posted teams on both sides of SUMGAS — awaiting a signal to pull the rope up. When the raider’s GELWA was over the rope the signal was given, the rope pulled forcefully up, which then tipped over the Haida GELWA. The raiders were dumped into the water where they were helpless. The HAISLA killed all but one; he was let go, given an old, small GELWA and allowed to make his own way back to his people, along with a warning to not come back.

That incident is symbolized with an upside down GELWA along with two hands holding a rope, on one side of the GLA-GLA-QWIL-SALA. Still another raid is shown on its opposite side.

The Haida again, used a large, ocean-going GELWA that was difficult to manage in the fast-flowing currents of the GICH-LAA-LEES-LA, The HAISLA GELWA were smaller, speedier and much more maneuverable; designed to deal with the river’s strong currents. As the Haida raiders tried to sneak up the GICH-LAA-LEES-LA they were met with a small GELWA flotilla of HAISLA — outnumbered the Haida managed to turn their GELWA around and were chased down the swift-flowing GICH-LAA-LEES-LA. Unknown to the raiders, the HAISLA had planned to herd them towards one of the logjams on the GICH-LAA-LEES-LA — even to the HAISLA these logjams were deadly, but the HAISLA advantage lay in the fact they knew the locations of the logjams.

Combined with the swift current and awkward handling of their large ocean-going GELWA, the Haida raiders didn’t see the log-jam trap until it was too late — their GELWA was irreversibly caught in the current. Their GELWA smashed into the logjam where it broke apart, the current then sucked everything and everyone under the logjam where everything simply vanished.

That incident is portrayed with a symbolic log and capsized GELWA with two raiders clinging to it.

So it was after all this happened that the Haida and HAISLA made peace and the CHILAKOONS story and rights became the property of the HAISLA IKSDUQ’IYA. The Haida names of GITWUN and CHILLAKOONS are still in use amongst today’s HAISLA!

Lyle Wilson 2024