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Indigenous exhibit shares insights into Se mi ah ma culture

Current White Rock Museum and Archives show curated by SFN
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This case, using traditional Se mi ah ma techniques, was woven by SFN resident Matilda Charles for the Wybern family’s violin in 1936. White Rock Museum and Archives photo.

The history of the Se mi ah mah people, indigenous residents of the peninsula, is traced in an exhibit hosted for the duration of this summer by White Rock Museum and Archives.

Che’ Semiahmah-Sen, Che’ Shesh Whe Weleq-sen Si’am (I am Semiahmoo, I am Survivor of the Flood) just opening at the museum this week, is scheduled to run until Oct. 2.

Curated by the Semiahmoo First Nation and originally developed by the Museum of Surrey, the exhibit explores the ways that the nation has flourished since the great flood at the end of the last ice age.

Among features of the exhibit are two large dioramas created by archaeologist Don Welsh, who has long worked with SFN members in documenting and preserving ancestral history.

Welsh’s dioramas show the sophisticated technology of reef-net fishing practiced by the Se mi ah ma hundreds of years ago and also depict a typical summer fishing village of the time.

Also on display will be several woven cedar pieces, video interviews and more.

The show is part of the museum’s ongoing commitment to reach out and engage the White Rock community, a media release states.

“Our mission is to preserve our community’s heritage, reveal our community’s story, share stories worth telling and welcome everyone,” it adds.

White Rock Museum and Archives is located at 14970 Marine Dr., in the historic 1912 waterfront train station.

For more information, visit www.whiterockmuseum.ca or call 604-541-2221.



alex.browne@peacearchnews.com

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