A number of religions, perhaps most notably Islam with its Black Stone in the Kabah in Mecca, have as a centrepiece a stone or meteorite which is venerated by followers. The First Nations of a part of western Canada are people of such a religion. On a hilltop to the east of Edmonton, Alberta, such a stone was the object of devotion for countless generations of Cree people. When passing through the area, no-one would fail to turn aside to the hilltop to leave an offering of tools or jewellery to the spirit which had sent this stone to Earth. The Manitou¹ Stone, or the Iron Creek Meteorite, might be described as the Black Stone of North America, but the recent history of the Manitou Stone has been much different from that of the sacred stone of Mecca.

A Description

The Iron Creek Meteorite is a roughly conical iron-nickel meteorite weighing approximately 150 kilograms. It has the characteristic, once molten and since solidified, surface of such metallic space flotsam. A fascinating feature of this meteorite, visible only on close inspection, is a very beautiful geometric pattern which seems to flash in and out of existence on the surface of the shiny metal. A portion of the perimeter of the meteorite resembles a human profile. A brief scientific description may be found at the Canadian Meteorite Catalogue.

The White History of the Manitou Stone

The Manitou Stone's original location seems to have been on a hilltop near the Iron Creek. It was there that Alexander Henry saw it in September of 1810. The modern town of Sedgewick, Alberta is the nearest population centre. Sometime before 1869, however, the Stone was removed from its sacred location by Methodist Missionaries and placed in the yard of the mission at Fort Victoria, some 250 kilometres to the north.

The Cree people who held the Manitou Stone sacred believed that its removal would lead to war, disease, and the loss of the plains bison on which their lives depended. Indeed, war with the Blackfoot followed quickly, and then epidemic bouts of smallpox. Today the plains bison are an isolated and protected species, confined to National Parks and game ranches.

In the 1880s, the Manitou Stone was removed to Victoria University, in Cobourg, Ontario. From there it was moved to the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. It is now housed in the Royal Alberta Museum in Edmonton.

The Present Disposition

The Manitou Stone is presently on a pedestal in a corner of the Syncrude Gallery of Aboriginal Culture in the Royal Alberta Museum. It is labelled as being 'on loan' from Victoria University. While some have described its present disposition as a place of honour, it is in a rather dark corner between a replica of a residential school and the hind end of a stuffed horse. Additionally, one of the steel mounting clips is clamped across the bridge of the human profile's nose and the figure appears to be in pain. While a great many visitors are able to view and even touch this sacred object, all visitors must pay an entrance fee, and none may leave offerings.

The Hope for the Future

There are ongoing discussions about the return of the Manitou Stone to its original home among the people who hold it sacred. The complicated web of 'ownership' and politics makes its return a great challenge. The Royal Alberta Museum is on record as feeling the Iron Creek meteorite to be too valuable to science to be returned to the Cree. Additionally, Victoria University, now a part of the University of Toronto, still claims ownership. Perhaps one day, through the peaceful though often heated discussions which characterise Canadian public life, the Iron Creek Manitou Stone will return to its hilltop, and the First Nations people who revere it will be allowed to worship freely.