"Gleaming slate mirrors the brooding mysteries of an ancient culture. The art of the Haida comes to life as the authors explor its origins, its history, its symbolism. Walk the forbidden trail to the secret quarry, stand beside the artist as he seeks the intrinsic carving waiting to be released from the rock, study the relationship of each piece to the changing social environment.

This is a major project was researched and written by a master Haida argillite carver, Douglas Wilson, and journalist-historian, Leslie Drew. Their photographs of mare than 300 pieces reveal the progression of the art, the consummate skill of the artists."