Pacific Encounters brings together for the first time many stunning Polynesian objects collected by voyagers and missionaries during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Illustrated are over 270 items gathered from the major regions of Polynesia. Many are from the British Museum, which houses fine and rare material from the expeditions of Captain Cook, Captain Vancouver and members of the London Missionary Society...

Pacific Encounters brings together for the first time many stunning Polynesian objects collected by voyagers and missionaries during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Illustrated are over 270 items gathered from the major regions of Polynesia. Many are from the British Museum, which houses fine and rare material from the expeditions of Captain Cook, Captain Vancouver and members of the London Missionary Society. Ranging from massive images of gods to small fish hooks, they are discussed in the contexts of their local use and meanings, and their journeys to museums all over the world. These pieces have remarkable stories to tell of encounters between humans and their gods, between Polynesians and Europeans, their respective chiefs and priests, beliefs and technologies.

Pacific Encounters is a groundbreaking book that conveys the wonder and excitement not only of the objects themselves, but of the fascinating Polynesian cultures that produced them.

STEVEN HOOPER is Director of the Sainsbury Research Unit at the University of East Anglia and principal investigator for the AHRC-sponsored research project Polynesian Visual Arts: meanings and histories in Pacific and European cultural contexts.

Foreword 6

Preface and Acknowledgements 7

Timeline 9

Map 10

1 Encountering Polynesia 12

2 Polynesian Encounters 31

3 Collecting Polynesia 48

C ATA LOG U E

Introduction 76

The Hawaiian Islands 78

New Zealand / Aotearoa 118

Easter Island / Rapa Nui 142

The Marquesas Islands 150

Mangareva and Tuamotu Islands 164

The Society Islands 170

The Austral Islands 192

The Cook Islands 218

Western Polynesia 240

Collectors, dealers and institutions 270

Bibliography 275

Index 284

Photographic credits and loans list 288