"I'll be damned," said David Exell when he came upon his 50-year-old family heirloom stashed in the bushes just a few yards from the south shore coastline in Devonshire.

The four foot totem pole was chipped and frayed, but in pretty good shape considering seven weeks on the lam.

Someone inexplicably stole the family heirloom from the junction of Berry Hill Road and Relative Row in Paget — ripped it right from its foundation and made a clean getaway.

An immigrant from western Canada named Bob Jones put it there in the 1950's as a tribute to his native ancestry and his growing family living in Bermuda. And now finally, this piece of very personal history is reunited with people who miss it. Mr. Exell said: "I think it's fantastic for the family, the grandchildren. I've got a granddaughter who lives in the area who doesn't know the road without a totem pole. And my aunt out in western Canada will be ecstatic to know her husband's totem pole has come home."

It's still a mystery as to who took the totem pole and why.

Nigel Pollard is the man who discovered it on Wednesday while he was out walking his dog named Reef. For the most part the heirloom was out in plain view, in an area Mr. Pollard walks his dog all the time. He said: "I've walked down here a lot since February — so has my mom, so has my dad and we hadn't seen it. And my mom claims she didn't see it Wednesday morning, but when I came Wednesday afternoon it was there. I don't know maybe they just put it there."

Mr. Pollard's home is at the end of Kent Avenue in Devonshire, just a short distance from Mr. Exell's place on Relative Row, in neighbouring Paget. Royal Gazette photographer Chris Burville helped the two sides arrange a meeting after he got word of the discovery.

To get to the dump location, Mr. Exell had to climb down a steep set of stairs, trek across a patch of rocky beach, and hop a short wall. It was worth the trip though because he thought he would never see the totem pole again — especially after a bad lead and a wild goose chase that put him in some stranger's backyard a few weeks ago. It turned out to be the wrong totem pole.

This time the trail led him in the right direction.

It'll cost some money to repair the cedar stump. It has a few dings and apparent insect damage. Plus Mr. Exell may have to pay up on the reward money he promised.

But when he talked to the Gazette later in the day he didn't seem to mind. He said all that mattered was that his wife was thrilled.