This maker was active around Seattle in the first quarter of the 20th century. Although we do not currently know the name of this artist, they were most likely Coast Salish from the Puget Sound region as they primarily worked for local Seattle curio shops such as Mack’s Curio Shop and the Ye Olde Curiosity Shop. Their work also lacks more northern elements seen on poles from Vancouver Island or the adjacent mainland at that time. This model is a Coast Salish iteration of the Tongass Tlingit pole that was stolen by a group of Seattlites touring Alaska in 1899 and was installed in the Pioneer Square neighbourhood. The pole eventually became a symbol for Seattle, especially during and after the Alaska–Yukon–Pacific Exposition was held in the city in 1909. Coast Salish and Nuu-chah-nulth artists would often create models of the Seattle Pole for tourists, like this earlier example.

Christopher W. Smith