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Totem Pole by James Bender at Pike Place Market (#72: 15046 bytes)

Raven Print

Raven Print #225 (45262 bytes)

The Raven was an important totem, a figure of prestige, and a cultural hero of the Northwest Coast Indians. He had magical powers and could change himself into anything at any time: the trickster, the transformer, the creator of the world. He put the sun, moon, and stars into the sky, fish into the sea, salmon into the rivers, food onto the land, and much more.  Looking at this design, we see in his partially open beak both his tongue and a disc representing the moon. The circular portion of his body represents the sun. These elements are reminders that he brought light into the world. The human hands signify that the wily raven would sometimes take on human form to tease, cheat, or trick people.
by Dale Faulstich
Size: 11" x 17"
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© 2009 Chief Seattle Arts
Last modified: November 09, 2014