Iconic totem pole being relocated from Stanley Park to UBC Museum of Anthropology

One of the iconic totem poles at Stanley Park's Brockton Point is being relocated after nearly 40 years, the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation has announced.

The Kakaso'las totem pole, carved by Kwakwaka'wakw artist Ellen Neel, has been on loan from UBC's Museum of Anthropology since 1985, and is being returned next month.

"Specialists have been hired to carefully relocate the totem pole in one piece," said Julia Hulbert, who oversees the park board's public art, monuments and memorials program.

The six-metre pole features the Thunderbird with a whale on its chest, a sea bear holding a killer whale, Bak'was (the "Wild Man of the Woods"), and other figures.

The artwork has become a Stanley Park fixture that's captivated locals and tourists alike, but officials said its condition is deteriorating after many decades on display.

"Many poles, once they reach around the 40-year mark – like the rest of us, things require a little bit more care," Hulbert said.

The Kakaso'las totem pole dates back even longer. Neel carved it in 1955, at what Hulbert described as an "informal carving pavilion" at Ferguson Point, with help from her sons Robert, Dave and John, but the pole spent around 30 years in Edmonton before being returned to Vancouver.

The next relocation, which is happening in co-ordination with the museum and Neel's family, is scheduled for Sept. 4. That gives Stanley Park visitors less than three weeks to view the artwork in its current location.

"Any protocols or ceremony that may need to take place for the pole’s relocation are being decided by the family of Ellen Neel," the park board said in a news release.

After arriving at the Museum of Anthropology, the totem pole will be examined, restored and treated.

With files from CTV News Vancouver's St. John Alexander