FOREWORD

Following the formation of the Society for the Furtherance
of British Columbia Indian Arts and Crafts at Walciuoneibess S1sig. G5 4° alia
January, 1940, the founder, Miss Alice Ravenhill, received from the
Indian Affairs Branch, Department of Mines and Resources, Ottawa, a
commission to prepare twenty large. coloured wall charts showing
examples of the arts and crafts formerly practised by the Indian
Tribes of this Province together with a Handbook containing informa-
tion on the characteristics, significance and legendary origin of the
figures selected. The object of this commission was the reproduction
and circulation of the Charts and Handbook in the Indian schools of
British Columbia in order to provide teachers and students with a
record of former tribal decorative arts and crafts which have pos-
sibilities of further development and utilization in modern life.

In the meantime, however, interest in the arts.and crafts
of our native tribes has greatly increased particularly among uni-
versities, schools of art, commercial organizations and students of
anthropology, not to mention the general public, so that it is thought
desirable to present this material in a somewhat condensed form as
Number 5 in the Occasional Paper Series published by the Provincial
Museum. Permission to make use of these illustrations and revised
text has kindly been given by Mr. Rk. A. Hoey, Superintendent of Wel-
fare and Training, Indian Affairs Branch, Department of Mines and
Resources, Ottawa, to whom we are much indebted.

G. Clifford Carl,

Director, Provincial Museum
of Natural History and
Anthropology.

Vactoria, B. C.
January, 1944.