Native American Art: Totem Pole

The totem pole is a traditional Native American artwork that comes from the tribes of the Pacific Northwest (PNW). Totem poles are unique to the PNW because unlike the Inuits and Plains Native Americans, they had large enough trees to create such pieces of art.

Most totem poles tell a story of either legends, lineage of a clan, or even significant events that took place. The order in which the totems or images are also significant with the most important being at the top and the least at the bottom although this is not always the case. The images on each pole are inspired by the people's natural surroundings with different clans owning particular designs.

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