Identify Ellen Neel totem

My great grandma was born in Canada in 1901. She came to America I believe in 1923. Anyway she told me that she knew the person who made this totem. But it does seem to have a stamp on the back and then "98" cents written in pencil on the back also. But is this an authentic Ellen Neel totem or was grandma just full of hot water?

 

Welcome, Jeralynn. The notation on the back says it's by 'Ellen Neel & the totem carvers'. Think that means it was made by one of the nameless totem carvers. Personally,unless I had sentimental attachment, I would pass it along. @komokwa

 

Food for thought.

Debora

 

Deb is all over this one !!!!

 

that's a totem world , totem......Ellens trademark !

 

Like Komo says....and as somewhat of an expert on Ellen Neel - my wife and I have more than a dozen of her totems, and have contributed to a book and museum exhibit featuring her and other carvers - I'll add this:
Ellen Neel was the first woman to carve in the NW coast formline style in modern times; and she was qualified to do it because her grandfather Charlie James had chosen her as the person he wanted to pass his skills on to, regardless of her gender.
She sold totems to support her family, and for many years, in the 1950s and 60s, she had a table in Stanley Park. In order to make her totems a commercial success, one of the things she did was to develop a series of standard designs, featuring a thunderbird on top with various figures below. She also developed the "totemland" pole, featuring a globe beneath the thunderbird's feet, with a map of Vancouver Island and the Canadian west coast, atop First Man; one example of which Komo has shown us.
Her primary signature was "EllEN NEEL" with that exact combination of upper and lower-case; but one of the logos she used on the Stanley Park totems was the stamped "Ellen Neel and the totem carvers" as seen on your item. This dates yours to the 1960s, when her children would assist in carving parts of some totems, and all of others. They were all Neel family, though, none were nameless persons outside the Neel family.
So yes, this may well be a genuine Neel (family) totem originally sold in Stanley Park.
However, it is the very least of such items, with designs that have been simplified to the extreme, and likely done mostly by the children and not by Neel herself. And though Neel prices have gone through the roof in recent years, this isn't one that I personally would have in my collection, except perhaps as an example of how low a Neel totem could go. And it would be possible that this is indeed a counterfeit; but some of the Stanley Park Neel totems done by the children were simplified to this extent.
So yes, could very well be "real," but might not be; and not very well-done in any case; but then that is true of some of the genuine Stanley Park Neels also.

 

there's a small one of Ellens in the upcoming FirstArts July auction... 2 to 3 grand !
& a Charlie James...13 inch..

 

I can no longer afford to buy any Neels, due to massive price inflation....probably can't afford James either.
But there are some very nice pieces in that auction!

 

Here are some Neels for comparison; not because they are great totems, but they show how far Ellen Neel was willing to go in simplifying the designs, to a degree that even some of her descendants might not recognize. These feature ears that are "incorrect," done sideways, or only one "ear" but are hers beyond any doubt.
The Totemland on the right has one of the stamped "Kwakiutl Indians" logos rather than her signature; the two on the left likely were partly done by some of the children; the one on the right may be all hers. Note how similar the bear is to the one shown by Jeralynn.

 

More info on Ellen Neel:
http://thecanadasite.com/art/art43_...her Charlie James, and her uncle Mungo Martin.

And this is one of my websites -there's a large Neel totem at the very bottom.
http://blundenharborsmithinlet.com/

 

As to the 98 cent price: many of the Stanley Park totems were priced in that range; visitors to her table would often say "don't you have something for less than $1?" and she would indeed have some in that range; simplified, done partly by the kids; but she had to make a living.
By contrast, and as an illustration of inflation, her basic price for larger poles was $4 per foot. Imagine, getting a 5-foot tall Neel totem for $20.

 

The First Arts Ellen Neel is lovely in the flesh. I might be somewhat biased though as I am a partner in the company. The preview looks amazing.

 

It is quite nice; not atypical for her work in Totemland poles of that size, though. Hard to imagine she originally sold them for just a few dollars.
And there was a time, not that long ago, when the estimate would likely have been just a few hundred dollars. But times and reputations change.