1784 · Views & Engravings
Engraving of The Death of Captain James Cook at Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii, 1784
$470
€420 · dollar price at today's exchange rate
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Shipping to the United States: $51 standard, $73 express, insured and tracked.
- Date
- 1784
- Maker
- Captain Cook voyages
- Kind
- Views & Engravings
- Size
- 20.5 × 24.5 cm (8.1 × 9.6 in)
- Condition
- Good. Good. Light soiling around the borders.Original folds and creases have been flattened. Study the image carefully.
- Period
- The Early Republic
- Places
- Hawaii
- Reference
- BG-13599-9
What the condition grades mean
- Excellent
- Bright and clean, with no faults worth mentioning.
- Very good
- Only light signs of age, such as faint toning.
- Good
- Normal signs of age for a sheet of this period: toning, some foxing, small marks or neat old repairs.
- Fair
- Clear faults such as staining, tears or repairs, priced to match.
Every fault we see is written in the condition note, and the whole sheet is shown uncropped in the photos.
Guaranteed original. This is an original of the period stated, not a later reproduction or print-on-demand copy. If it is ever shown to be otherwise, we refund you in full.
Shipping to the United States. Sent from our gallery in Langweer, the Netherlands, flat between boards or rolled in a tube, and fully insured.
Delivery and import charges.
About this piece
A historical copper engraving depicting "The Death of Captain James Cook, F.R.S. at Owhyhee in MDCCLXXIX" (1779). This engraving is particularly significant as it portrays the death of the famed British explorer Captain James Cook, who was killed at Kealakekua Bay on the Big Island of Hawaii, then known to Europeans as Owhyhee.
The print is from "Captain Cook's Voyage, Octavo Edition," and was published on November 20, 1784. The artwork was drawn by D. P. Dodd and others who were present at the scene, and it was engraved by T. Cook. The publishers listed are J. Fielding, Pater-noster Row, Scatcherd & Whitaker Ave Maria Lane, and J. Stockdall Piccadilly.
In the scene, the drama and chaos of Cook's final moments are vividly captured. The foreground shows Cook and his men in a struggle with Hawaiian islanders. Captain Cook can be seen in the center, having been struck and fallen to the ground, with a violent melee surrounding him. European sailors are depicted attempting to retreat to their boats amidst the confrontation. The background includes a view of the bay with the ships at anchor, and the distinctive Hawaiian landscape provides context to the location.
This engraving would have served as an important historical record for readers at the time, offering a visual account of the tragic end of one of the most famous explorers of the 18th century, whose voyages had a profound impact on Western knowledge of the Pacific regions.
