The Cession of the District of Matavai in the island of Otaheite (Tahiti) to Captain James Wilson
The Cession of the District of Matavai in the island of Otaheite (Tahiti) to Captain James Wilson
Commissioned by the Directors of the London Missionary Society (LMS) this painting records the arrival of British missionary activity in the Pacific. It was presented to Captain James Wilson by the Directors of the LMS in recognition of his service as commander of the 'Duff', the Society’s ship that carried the first thirty missionaries to the ‘South Seas’ (Tahiti, Tongatapu and the Marquesas). Commemorating the supposed grant of land at Matavai Bay, on the northern coast of Tahiti-nui (Society Islands), the painting inaugurates the first overseas mission of the Society and the first Protestant mission in Polynesia. It was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1799, number 26.
Object number: ZBA6683
Date: 1798-1799
Dimensions: 360 mm x 511 mm
- Image reference: S2549
- © National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, Bernard Collection
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