Three highly polished figures make up this model totem pole. The hollowed back suggests that this was made relatively early in the argillite totem pole continuum, c. 1880. Like its wooden counterparts, the sculpture is wider than it is deep, a reflection of the half-log shape common to large Haida totem poles. The high polish connects this model to many later examples. Top to bottom, the figures are the bodiless head of a shark or dogfish, the snout arcing above its humanoid face. The fishes’ gill slits are carved into the forehead, and the knife-like teeth do much to indicate its identity. Beneath is the head of a raven, its beak laid down against its breast, its formline “ears” flanking the shark’s jaw. The wings are folded forward, the outer surface embroidered with a single large ovoid shape at the top. Feathers are represented by long, narrow parallel lines extending to the tips of the wings, part of which are tucked behind the upright ears of the large beaver figure below. A short stack of status rings atop the beaver’s head is grasped by the raven’s beak. The beaver is seated in what is often called the hocker position, its forefeet curled around the ends of a stout stick, a consistent feature of a beaver image. The stick is clamped between the large incisors in the beaver’s mouth, the primary identifier of Northwest Coast beavers. An unidentified face that looks out from between the beaver’s hind legs appears to be wearing a hat, the surface of which is textured, perhaps to suggest a woven pattern. A separate square base is attached at the bottom to add stability to the sculpture.

Steven C. Brown