Bilder John Webber (1751–1793) – View of a Man of Mangea – Oceania – Large Folio Engraving (1784)

Beskrivning

"A MAN of MANGEA." This engraving illustrates a portrait of a man from Mangaia, the southernmost of the Cook Islands, featuring a top-knot hairstyle and a large knife or tool tucked behind his ear. The portrait is rendered with significant attention to the subject's facial features and traditional grooming habits. The technical nature is a copper engraving published in London by G. Nicol and T. Cadell as part of the official account of Captain James Cook's third voyage, titled A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean. John Webber was the official artist appointed to the expedition, responsible for documenting the landscapes, inhabitants, and social customs encountered throughout the Pacific. This work is significant for its early ethnographic recording of the people of the Cook Islands as observed firsthand during the late eighteenth century.

John Webber was an English painter and printmaker who achieved international fame after being selected by the Admiralty to accompany Captain Cook on his final voyage of discovery. Trained in Bern and Paris, he applied a refined neoclassical aesthetic to the documentation of scientific and geographical findings. His primary contribution was the transformation of field sketches into finished paintings and subsequent engravings that defined the European perception of the Pacific for generations. Webber's meticulous attention to physiognomy, local costume, and material culture provided a vital archive for anthropologists and historians studying early contact between European and Pacific cultures.

Artist or Maker: John Webber.

Dimensions: Approximately 55 cm x 40 cm.

Medium: Engraving.

Date: 1784.

Condition Report:
This work is in good condition overall. There may be a few minor imperfections or fox or mottled marks to be expected with age. Please review the images carefully for condition details, and feel free to contact us with any questions or for a comprehensive condition report.