Polynesia (1869/70)
Polynesia (from Greek: πολύς "polus" many + νῆσος "nēsos" island) is a subregion of Oceania, comprising a large grouping of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean.
The people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are termed Polynesians and they share many similar traits including language, culture and beliefs.[1]
The term "Polynesia" was first used by Charles de Brosses, a French writer, in 1756, and originally applied to all the islands of the Pacific. In 1831,
Jules Dumont d'Urville proposed a restriction on its use during a lecture to the Geographical Society of Paris.
These hitherto unpublished pictures show the photographs taken by naval commander Paul-Emile Miot during an expedition to Polynesia aboard the 'Astree' in 1869.
They represent the first photographic record of the South Sea people. Miot took extraordinary care with the composition of his views and the staging of his portraits.
In his pictures he seems to have wanted to capture a paradise as the Westwern world of the 19th century liked to imagine it.
Vue de Taio-Hae, prise du débarcadère, Nuku-Hiva, Marquises, 1870. 'Paul-Emile Miot: The Invention of Paradise' 1845-1870 by Sydney Picasso is published in London by Hirmer Publishers, £28.
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