Huahine, Society Islands, Polynesia
18th century
French edition print
Image: 20 × 33 in. (50.8 × 83.8 cm), not including mat
Provenance: Sotheby’s, New York
This 18th-century French edition print presents a view of Huahine in the Society Islands, part of the visual record of European encounters with the Pacific. The image is associated with John Cleveley Junior, whose Pacific views were developed from drawings connected to Captain Cook’s third voyage. Huahine, located in present-day French Polynesia, appears here through the lens of late 18th-century voyage imagery and European print publication.
Cleveley specialized in maritime and coastal subjects, and this composition reflects that interest through its attention to shoreline, figures, vessels, and landscape setting. The print belongs to a group of Pacific views that circulated in Europe and helped define how places such as Tahiti, Huahine, Hawai‘i, and New Zealand were visually understood by distant audiences. While such images are valuable historical documents, they also reflect the conventions and inaccuracies of European interpretation during the period.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
Huahine, Society Islands, Polynesia
18th century
French edition print
Image: 20 × 33 in. (50.8 × 83.8 cm), not including mat
Provenance: Sotheby’s, New York
This 18th-century French edition print presents a view of Huahine in the Society Islands, part of the visual record of European encounters with the Pacific. The image is associated with John Cleveley Junior, whose Pacific views were developed from drawings connected to Captain Cook’s third voyage. Huahine, located in present-day French Polynesia, appears here through the lens of late 18th-century voyage imagery and European print publication.
Cleveley specialized in maritime and coastal subjects, and this composition reflects that interest through its attention to shoreline, figures, vessels, and landscape setting. The print belongs to a group of Pacific views that circulated in Europe and helped define how places such as Tahiti, Huahine, Hawai‘i, and New Zealand were visually understood by distant audiences. While such images are valuable historical documents, they also reflect the conventions and inaccuracies of European interpretation during the period.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
