musqueamhousepost

UBC has a long history of partnership with the Aboriginal community. The Okanagan campus is located on the territory of the Okanagan Nation, and the Vancouver campus is located on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory of the Musqueam people.  On April 6, 2016, the UBC community dedicated the Musqueam Post–also known as the Musqueam sʔi:ɬqəy̓ qeqən (double-headed serpent post)–which will serve as a permanent welcome to all the visitors to UBC’s Vancouver campus and as a reminder of our relationship with the Musqueam people.

About the Musqueam Post (also known as the Musqueam sʔi:ɬqəy̓ qeqən) 
By Brent Sparrow Jr.

This qeqən (post) tells the story of the origin of our name xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam). The old people spoke of a small lake called xʷməm̓qʷe:m (Camosun Bog) where the sʔi:ɬqəy̓ (double-headed serpent) originated. They were warned as youth to be cautious and not go near or they would surely die. This sʔi:ɬqəy̓ was so massive its winding path from the lake to the stal̕əw̓ (river) became the creek flowing through Musqueam to this day. Everything the serpent passed over died and from its droppings bloomed a new plant, the məθkʷəy̓. For this reason the people of long ago named that place xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam – place of the məθkʷəy̓).

This qeqən represents our xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) ancestors and our ongoing connection to them and this land through their teachings. The figure is holding the sʔi:ɬqəy̓’s tail to showcase thissχʷəy̓em̓’s (ancient histories) passage through generations, relating how we became known asxʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people – People of the məθkʷəy̓ plant. The scalloping reflects thesʔi:ɬqəy̓’s path and trigons represent the unique məθkʷəy̓ plant. The sʔi:ɬqəy̓’s stomach is said to have been as big as a storage basket, designed here as an oval. I drew upon these traditional design elements to depict this rich history.

-Adapted from the UBC and UBC Centennial websites