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| A Sasq'ets mask, commonly know as sasquatch (photo: Cliff Barackman) |
"Much of the [premier] episode was filmed on the historic Sts' Ailes First Nations Reserve in British Columbia. While there, I was allowed access to the traditional sasquatch mask that had been "lost" for 75 years..." --Cliff Barackman
Around May of 2014 the Canadian Press syndicated a story about a mask that was lost for 75 years. In the article it described a James Leon's 16-year journey to recover the Sasq'ets mask. The way he finally re-discovered the lost artifact was serendipitous.
Leon was at a repatriation event for another First Nations artifact held by the Vancouver Museum when he asked the lady sitting beside him if she knew of the ape-like mask partially covered in bear fur.Cliff Barackman posted on his Facebook page that the Season 9 premier episode of Finding Bigfoot will take him to the Sts' Ailes First Nations Reserve in British Columbia.
"Her eyes lit up and she said 'We were just looking at that mask the other day.' And they were gracious enough to go get it for me," he said with a chuckle.
The mask disappeared in 1939 from Sts'ailes First Nation, near Harrison Hot Springs in B.C.'s Fraser Valley.
Community elders told Leon that the mask had been taken by J.W. Burns, a teacher at the Chehalis Indian Day School, and a man obsessed with the sasquatch legend.
Burns, who is often credited for bringing the word "sasquatch" into common use, donated the mask to the Vancouver Museum.
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| Photo from 1938 Sasquatch Days Festival |
Although the First Nation people refer to the mask as sasquatch, some skeptics think we should be more cautious how we reference these artifacts. Sharon Hill of Doubtful News writes, "The article makes a connection to Sasquatch as described by indigenous people but I’m not clear how solid that connection is. How do we know that the mask represents the same entity that we now refer to as “sasquatch” or Bigfoot? Or are we jumping to conclusions?"
She ends the article with a warning, "It’s a potential hazard to jump to conclusions and call this a representation of Sasquatch."
It is not clear if the warning is for the readers or the aboriginals who actually refer to the mask as a representation of sasquatch. In fact, in the article itself, a representative of the Sts' Ailes people makes a direct reference to sasquatch.
She ends the article with a warning, "It’s a potential hazard to jump to conclusions and call this a representation of Sasquatch."
It is not clear if the warning is for the readers or the aboriginals who actually refer to the mask as a representation of sasquatch. In fact, in the article itself, a representative of the Sts' Ailes people makes a direct reference to sasquatch.
"We do burning for the sasquatch. It's our belief that his primary role is to ensure that the land is being taken care of. Because everyone of us, as Sts'ailes people, we carry an ancestral name, a rich name from the land."The video below is a video uploaded by Tom Yamerone. Known for his Bigfoot Songs.
Does Sharon Hill think First Nation people don't know what they're talking about? That's pretty insulting to them, in my opinion.
ReplyDeletesorry all you squatchers out there, after researching for years i have found zero hard evidence and the patterson video was a total hoax. you are chasing your own tail. mobsters can't hide bodies but sasquatchs can? they have been dodging trail cams since their invention does that not say it all? if you think the patterson video was real do a bit of research on the guy and you will find he was a total con artist that owned a bigfoot costume for the motion picture he was shooting. movie never got finished but in the meantime he shot the only footage ever of a sasquatch? sasquatch sightings are people seeing upright walking bears and being startled they don't get a good look at it. bears smell just like sasquatch are always explained and their back paw print looks just like a human print but bigger. notice that the spots with the most sightings are areas with large bear populations? if a bear hurts one of its front legs they can learn to walk upright so if a hunter shoots a bear in a front paw but it gets away you will have a bear that walks upright for the rest of his life. check videos of bear walking upright on youtube
ReplyDeleteWell, I guess you just need have one cross the road in front of your headlights to make you a believer. Upright bear my a$$.
ReplyDeleteUnknown, what evidence do we have that you've "researched for years"? Why should we believe you're objective enough to evaluate any evidence you've gathered, rather than jumping to an easy conclusion based on your personal incredulity? What about Sasquatch accounts which have been close enough to rule out a bear? They describe a primate or human like face, not an ursine face, human-like hands, not claws. Accounts of Sasquatch moving quickly, even running (not walking) in a bipedal stance? Footprints which experts can distinguish from that of bears? Are you even familiar with the full breadth of Sasquatch research or have you just been reading skeptical literature that grasps at straws and suppositions for every account, evidence free? As for bodies, refer to Grover Krantz' comments regarding the frequency of naturally dead bears encountered. Are you aware of actual studies performed that gives us an actual number for realistic expectations of finding a Sasquatch corpse? Say how often we should find their corpses, given their size and a viable breeding population? If not, perhaps you should refrain from invoking such speculative objections.
ReplyDeleteIf you think the Patterson film is a hoax maybe do some critical thinking and realize the supposed costume has never been produced, and the film analysis done leads to skepticism that it could even be a man in a costume. Bears smell like Sasquatch? Source please. Sorry Unknown, you've not produced enough evidence to suggest one up-close Sasquatch sighting was in fact a bear, much less all of them.
thousands of years of native oral tradition also sightings by the settlers way before the modern day, that is proof enough
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