Mayer wins Basil Stuart-Stubbs
March 30th, 2026
Carol E. Mayer has been awarded the 2026 Basil Stuart-Stubbs Prize for her book Sea of Islands: Exploring Objects, Stories, and Memories from Oceania (Figure 1 $55).
The $3,500 prize, presented by UBC Library and the Pacific BookWorld News Society, recognizes the best scholarly book on a British Columbia subject by a Canadian author.
Published by Figure 1 Publishing, the book examines the histories and cultural significance of objects within Canada’s largest Oceanic collection, housed at the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia. The collection includes approximately 3,500 objects from across Oceania, encompassing regions such as Australia and Papua New Guinea.
Mayer, a longtime curator and Research Fellow, Pacific at MOA, has spent decades researching and documenting the collection. Her work traces its origins to early donations, including those of Frank Burnett and extends to contemporary contributions from Oceanic communities in Vancouver. Through collaboration with knowledge holders, artists and scholars, Sea of Islands explores how these objects carry stories of migration, memory and cultural continuity.
In reflecting on the project, Mayer emphasized her efforts to reconnect objects with their origins and reframe the collection through a decolonizing lens. The book highlights not only the historical journeys of these cultural belongings but also their ongoing relevance within diasporic communities in British Columbia.
The prize will be presented at a reception in April.
Shortlisted titles include works by Jennifer E. Shaw and co-authors Roger Hayter, Jerry Patchell, and Kevin Rees, reflecting the range of scholarship connected to the province.
Established in memory of Basil Stuart-Stubbs, the prize honours contributions to British Columbia’s literary and academic landscape. 9781773271552
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