Italy
18th century
Hand-colored copper plate engraving
16 × 20 in. including mat (40.6 × 50.8 cm); image: 9 × 11½ in. (22.9 × 29.2 cm)
Provenance: Private collection, Stockholm
This 18th-century Italian hand-colored copper plate engraving depicts a Tahitian priest, reflecting European interest in Polynesian religious life during the period of Pacific exploration. Images of priests, chiefs, dancers, and ceremonial subjects circulated through travel publications and shaped the visual record of Tahiti for European audiences. The work belongs to the broader tradition of historical Pacific prints produced from voyage-era sources and later editions.
The hand coloring adds emphasis to the figure, costume, and setting while preserving the linear structure of the copper plate engraving. The image presents the priest as an individual cultural subject rather than as part of a larger landscape or maritime scene. As a historical print, it offers a period European representation of Tahitian ritual authority and the print culture through which Polynesian subjects were collected and studied.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
Italy
18th century
Hand-colored copper plate engraving
16 × 20 in. including mat (40.6 × 50.8 cm); image: 9 × 11½ in. (22.9 × 29.2 cm)
Provenance: Private collection, Stockholm
This 18th-century Italian hand-colored copper plate engraving depicts a Tahitian priest, reflecting European interest in Polynesian religious life during the period of Pacific exploration. Images of priests, chiefs, dancers, and ceremonial subjects circulated through travel publications and shaped the visual record of Tahiti for European audiences. The work belongs to the broader tradition of historical Pacific prints produced from voyage-era sources and later editions.
The hand coloring adds emphasis to the figure, costume, and setting while preserving the linear structure of the copper plate engraving. The image presents the priest as an individual cultural subject rather than as part of a larger landscape or maritime scene. As a historical print, it offers a period European representation of Tahitian ritual authority and the print culture through which Polynesian subjects were collected and studied.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
