Button blanket, Kwakwa̱ka̱ʼwakw

This button blanket is thought to have originated on northern Vancouver Island. It was acquired from William Cadwallader, a grandson of the last Hudson's Bay factor at Fort Rupert, at Port Hardy. The central design on this blanket resembles a sacred cedar bark regalia known as Tłagakwaxawa'yi worn by members of the Hamatsa, a Secret Society.