A Look at Vancouver's Museum of Anthropology

The Museum of Anthropology is on the edge of the University of British Columbia's (UBC) campus. Inside is a unique collection worth seeing while in Vancouver. Even for people who don't like museums, I think the collection here is different enough to be entertaining.

Anthropology is the study of humanity and an anthropology museum thus contains artifacts related to humanity, from ceremonial objects to clothing. UBC's Museum of Anthropology contains a lot of objects related to First Peoples and the people of British Columbia.

Outside, large totem poles greet visitors. From that point, it's clear that this is a great place to take pictures.

Yes, unlike typical museums, the Museum of Anthropology allows visitors to take all the pictures they want. Just don't use a flash. This made the visit more fun.

Then inside, the diverse collection of totem poles has to be one of the biggest collections of its kind anywhere.

It was neat in that it had the archives rooms on display and tons of drawers had items tucked away for visitors to explore. Other museums would have this type of stuff in a storage warehouse. The MOA puts it in cases. There's almost so much stuff in these drawers that we had to skip through.

The extensive china collection was a surprise too. The china room was in a dark room and a contrast from the bright and airy totem pole area. I took a picture of this interesting vase in the china room at the Museum of Anthropolgy.

Vancouver's anthropology museum also has modern pieces. One of the modern centerpieces is Bill Reid's "The Raven and the First Men", a large wood sculpture. According to the Museum of Anthropolgy website:

• "Depicted is a moment in the ancestral past of the Haida people when Raven, a wise and powerful yet mischievous trickster, has just found the first humans in a clam shell on the beach, and is coaxing them out of it."

An interesting piece to say the least. If you are in Vancouver and have some time, check out UBC Museum of Anthropology.

Learn more at the museum's official website.

Have you been to the museum? What did you think?