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A Gift from Alaska
On March 14, 1998, the Sealaska Corporation presented the Polynesian Voyaging Society with a 14-foot tall Alaskan red cedar house post at a ceremony on the grounds of the Bishop Museum. The gift commemorates the bond that has developed between the native peoples of Southeastern Alaska and Hawai'i. The hulls of the voyaging canoe Hawai'iloa were carved from Sitka spruce logs donated to the Polynesian Voyaging Society by Sealaska Corporation. In honor of that generous gift, Hawai'iloa traveled throughout Southeast Alaska in the summer of 1995. Strong friendships were forged during that voyage--friendships symbolized by this house post. Traditionally, a house post is raised at the entrance of a dwelling to identify the occupants. The new house post will be temporarily placed at the Bishop Museum; plans call for permanent placement in a halau for voyaging canoes at a site somewhere on O'ahu. An identical house post will be raised in Juneau this summer. Both house posts were carved by Nathan Jackson, a world-renown Tlingit wood-artist from Ketchikan. It was Jackson's late uncle, Judson Brown, who helped foster the connections between Hawai'i and Aaska. Jackson was on hand at the presentation ceremonies. |
