The Death of Captain James Cook (Zoffany)
Encyclopedia
The Death of Captain James Cook, 14 February 1779 is a painting by Johann Zoffany
. The painting records the loss of the British explorer Captain James Cook
. The painting was completed in 1794 some years after the death of Cook in 1779. Other paintings of the death of Cook
were painted earlier. The Mahiole
(Feathered Helmet) that was included in the painting of Cook's death by Zoffany is said to be the helmet given to Cook when he first landed in Hawaii.
who was the official artist on Cook's third voyage. Zoffany had been invited at one time to be an artist on one of Cook's voyages and it is thought that he may have previously painted Cook. Webber had not witnessed the death of Cook, but he would have known many of the people involved. He would have known the English sailors but he would also have seen many of the natives. When Cook and his men visited Hawaii for the second time they spent some time on the main island of Hawaii where he had been received many gifts from the Hawaiian Chief including a feather cape
and feathered helmet
. Cook had been killed when he returned to Hawaii only two weeks after his second visit. His unplanned return to the island was due to a storm. Cook angered the native people by attempting to take the local chief, Kalaniʻōpuʻu, as a hostage in order to get a missing boat returned. In the confusion, Cook shot a man and in the aftermath he and four marines were speared to death; the death appears unintended. Cook's replacement, Captain Clerke, was able to very quickly reestablish a relationship with the Hawaiians, and they left with little ill will.
Besides Webber's painting, Zoffany also took poses from Benjamin West
's The Death of General Wolfe
. The native figure is based on the classic sculpture Discobolus
which Zoffany had previously studied as it was included in his painting Charles Townley in the Park St. Gallery. Cook is thought to be placed in a pose that was inspired by a Ludovisi Gladiator. The Hawaiian helmet that was included in the painting had been borrowed from a London museum and was in fact one that had belonged to Captain Cook. It was the helmet given to Cook by the Hawaiian Chief on his first visit to Hawaii in 1787. The helmet is thought to have been included by Zoffany because of its similarity to a classic Greek helmet.
The painting's noble tribesman of the natives behaviour belies some of the details. It is believed that the natives cannibalized some of Cook's body. Some of his bones were returned, but other parts of his body were kept and displayed by the islanders.
had sent Zoffany to Florence
where he had agreed to paint the Tribuna of the Uffizi
. Zoffany stayed seven years and the resulting painting was not well received.
Zoffany had to leave the country and he never again got a royal commission. He had hoped to sail with Captain Cook, but as a second choice he elected to make the long journey to Lucknow
where he painted the life in colonial India. Whilst Zoffany was in India he worked with William Hodges
. The construction of this painting is said to be based on a sketch by Hodges.
Zoffany went to see a play at Covent Garden concerning the death of Captain Cook who had been killed in Hawaii
on his third voyage to find the North-West Passage in 1779. This is thought to have inspired him to paint the death of Cook at the hand of the Hawaiian natives. Cook had been given a mahiole
(feathered helmet) and a feather cloak
which was given to the Leverian Museum. Zoffany borrowed these as props for the construction of the painting which was not intended to be accurate and included poses that were taken from classic statues. This helmet remained in the Sir Ashton Lever
's museum which was originally in Leicester Square
. Strangely the feathered helmet that had been given to Cook and included in this painting is now in a museum in Vienna.
When Cook visited Hawaii for the first time in January 1778. Cook was received by high chief Kalaniʻōpuʻu. Kalaniʻōpuʻu had with him six feather cloaks and a helmet. At the end of the meeting Cook was given the helmet and cloak that Kalaniʻōpuʻu had been wearing. On the expedition's return many of Cook's gatherings ended up in the collection of Sir Ashton Lever
and they were exhibited in his museum that was called the Holophusikon
(and later the Leverian Museum). Lever was given a knighthood for founding this early museum which at its height was in Leicester Square. Lever went bankrupt and his collection was disposed of by public lottery. The collection was obtained by James Parkinson
who continued to exhibit it. He eventually sold this collection in 7,000 serarate sales. The British Museum
failed to bid on these items as Sir Joseph Banks
had advised them that there was nothing of value.
Cook gave the helmets to the collection of Sir Ashton Lever
. When Lever's museum ran into financial difficulties in 1806 many items were purchased by Baron Leopold von Fichtel for the museum in Vienna.
. The painting is now in the collection of the National Maritime Museum
in Greenwich
, London.
Johann Zoffany
Johan Zoffany, Zoffani or Zauffelij was a German neoclassical painter, active mainly in England...
. The painting records the loss of the British explorer Captain James Cook
James Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
. The painting was completed in 1794 some years after the death of Cook in 1779. Other paintings of the death of Cook
Death of Cook
Death of Cook is the name of several paintings depicting the 1779 death of British explorer and European discoverer of the Hawaiian Islands, Captain James Cook at Kealakekua Bay. Most of these paintings seem to go back to an original by John Cleveley the Younger, painted in 1784, although other...
were painted earlier. The Mahiole
Mahiole
Hawaiian feather helmets, known as mahiole in the Hawaiian language, were worn with [[ʻahuʻula | feather cloaks (ʻahu ʻula)]]. These were symbols of the highest rank reserved for the men of the alii, the chiefly class of Hawaii. There are examples of this traditional headgear in museums around the...
(Feathered Helmet) that was included in the painting of Cook's death by Zoffany is said to be the helmet given to Cook when he first landed in Hawaii.
The painting's construction
The painting is strangely unfinished but the construction has taken some thought. Zoffany is thought to have based the painting on another made of Cook's death by John WebberJohn Webber
John Webber was an English artist best known for his images of early Alaska and Hawaii.Webber was born on 6 October 1751 in London, educated in Switzerland and studied painting at Paris....
who was the official artist on Cook's third voyage. Zoffany had been invited at one time to be an artist on one of Cook's voyages and it is thought that he may have previously painted Cook. Webber had not witnessed the death of Cook, but he would have known many of the people involved. He would have known the English sailors but he would also have seen many of the natives. When Cook and his men visited Hawaii for the second time they spent some time on the main island of Hawaii where he had been received many gifts from the Hawaiian Chief including a feather cape
Feather cloak
Featherwork cloaks have been used by several cultures.-Hawaii:Elaborate feather cloaks called [[ʻahuʻula]] were created by early Hawaiians for the alii .Feathers were also used in women's skirts called pāū....
and feathered helmet
Mahiole
Hawaiian feather helmets, known as mahiole in the Hawaiian language, were worn with [[ʻahuʻula | feather cloaks (ʻahu ʻula)]]. These were symbols of the highest rank reserved for the men of the alii, the chiefly class of Hawaii. There are examples of this traditional headgear in museums around the...
. Cook had been killed when he returned to Hawaii only two weeks after his second visit. His unplanned return to the island was due to a storm. Cook angered the native people by attempting to take the local chief, Kalaniʻōpuʻu, as a hostage in order to get a missing boat returned. In the confusion, Cook shot a man and in the aftermath he and four marines were speared to death; the death appears unintended. Cook's replacement, Captain Clerke, was able to very quickly reestablish a relationship with the Hawaiians, and they left with little ill will.
Besides Webber's painting, Zoffany also took poses from Benjamin West
Benjamin West
Benjamin West, RA was an Anglo-American painter of historical scenes around and after the time of the American War of Independence...
's The Death of General Wolfe
The Death of General Wolfe
The Death of General Wolfe is a well-known 1770 painting by Anglo-American artist Benjamin West depicting the death of British General James Wolfe during the 1759 Battle of Quebec of the Seven Years' War. It is an oil on canvas of the Enlightenment period...
. The native figure is based on the classic sculpture Discobolus
Discobolus
The Discobolus of Myron is a famous Greek sculpture that was completed towards the end of the Severe period, circa 460-450 BC. The original Greek bronze is lost...
which Zoffany had previously studied as it was included in his painting Charles Townley in the Park St. Gallery. Cook is thought to be placed in a pose that was inspired by a Ludovisi Gladiator. The Hawaiian helmet that was included in the painting had been borrowed from a London museum and was in fact one that had belonged to Captain Cook. It was the helmet given to Cook by the Hawaiian Chief on his first visit to Hawaii in 1787. The helmet is thought to have been included by Zoffany because of its similarity to a classic Greek helmet.
The painting's noble tribesman of the natives behaviour belies some of the details. It is believed that the natives cannibalized some of Cook's body. Some of his bones were returned, but other parts of his body were kept and displayed by the islanders.
History
Johann Zoffany was a German-born painter who had become a successful portrait painter in London. Among his principal patrons were the royal family. Queen CharlotteCharlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was the Queen consort of the United Kingdom as the wife of King George III...
had sent Zoffany to Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
where he had agreed to paint the Tribuna of the Uffizi
Tribuna of the Uffizi (painting)
The Tribuna of the Uffizi by Johann Zoffany is a painting of the north-east section of the Tribuna room in the Uffizi in Florence, Italy.-Production:...
. Zoffany stayed seven years and the resulting painting was not well received.
Zoffany had to leave the country and he never again got a royal commission. He had hoped to sail with Captain Cook, but as a second choice he elected to make the long journey to Lucknow
Lucknow
Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....
where he painted the life in colonial India. Whilst Zoffany was in India he worked with William Hodges
William Hodges
William Hodges RA was an English painter. He was a member of James Cook's second voyage to the Pacific Ocean, and is best known for the sketches and paintings of locations he visited on that voyage, including Table Bay, Tahiti, Easter Island, and the Antarctic.Hodges was born in London. He was a...
. The construction of this painting is said to be based on a sketch by Hodges.
Zoffany went to see a play at Covent Garden concerning the death of Captain Cook who had been killed in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
on his third voyage to find the North-West Passage in 1779. This is thought to have inspired him to paint the death of Cook at the hand of the Hawaiian natives. Cook had been given a mahiole
Mahiole
Hawaiian feather helmets, known as mahiole in the Hawaiian language, were worn with [[ʻahuʻula | feather cloaks (ʻahu ʻula)]]. These were symbols of the highest rank reserved for the men of the alii, the chiefly class of Hawaii. There are examples of this traditional headgear in museums around the...
(feathered helmet) and a feather cloak
Feather cloak
Featherwork cloaks have been used by several cultures.-Hawaii:Elaborate feather cloaks called [[ʻahuʻula]] were created by early Hawaiians for the alii .Feathers were also used in women's skirts called pāū....
which was given to the Leverian Museum. Zoffany borrowed these as props for the construction of the painting which was not intended to be accurate and included poses that were taken from classic statues. This helmet remained in the Sir Ashton Lever
Ashton Lever
Sir Ashton Lever was an English collector of natural objects.-Biography:Ashton Lever was born in 1729 to well off titled parents who lived at Alkrington Hall...
's museum which was originally in Leicester Square
Leicester Square
Leicester Square is a pedestrianised square in the West End of London, England. The Square lies within an area bound by Lisle Street, to the north; Charing Cross Road, to the east; Orange Street, to the south; and Whitcomb Street, to the west...
. Strangely the feathered helmet that had been given to Cook and included in this painting is now in a museum in Vienna.
When Cook visited Hawaii for the first time in January 1778. Cook was received by high chief Kalaniʻōpuʻu. Kalaniʻōpuʻu had with him six feather cloaks and a helmet. At the end of the meeting Cook was given the helmet and cloak that Kalaniʻōpuʻu had been wearing. On the expedition's return many of Cook's gatherings ended up in the collection of Sir Ashton Lever
Ashton Lever
Sir Ashton Lever was an English collector of natural objects.-Biography:Ashton Lever was born in 1729 to well off titled parents who lived at Alkrington Hall...
and they were exhibited in his museum that was called the Holophusikon
Holophusikon
The Holophusikon was a museum of natural curiosities exhibited at Leicester House, on Leicester Square in London, England, from 1775 to 1786 by Ashton Lever.-History:...
(and later the Leverian Museum). Lever was given a knighthood for founding this early museum which at its height was in Leicester Square. Lever went bankrupt and his collection was disposed of by public lottery. The collection was obtained by James Parkinson
James Parkinson
James Parkinson was an English apothecary surgeon, geologist, paleontologist, and political activist. He is most famous for his 1817 work, An Essay on the Shaking Palsy in which he was the first to describe "paralysis agitans", a condition that would later be renamed Parkinson's disease by...
who continued to exhibit it. He eventually sold this collection in 7,000 serarate sales. The British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
failed to bid on these items as Sir Joseph Banks
Joseph Banks
Sir Joseph Banks, 1st Baronet, GCB, PRS was an English naturalist, botanist and patron of the natural sciences. He took part in Captain James Cook's first great voyage . Banks is credited with the introduction to the Western world of eucalyptus, acacia, mimosa and the genus named after him,...
had advised them that there was nothing of value.
Cook gave the helmets to the collection of Sir Ashton Lever
Ashton Lever
Sir Ashton Lever was an English collector of natural objects.-Biography:Ashton Lever was born in 1729 to well off titled parents who lived at Alkrington Hall...
. When Lever's museum ran into financial difficulties in 1806 many items were purchased by Baron Leopold von Fichtel for the museum in Vienna.
Provenance
Zoffany's painting was obtained in its unfinished state by Cook's widow. When she died in 1835 the painting was not mentioned specifically and it was left to John Leach Bennet who gave it to Greenwich HospitalGreenwich Hospital
Greenwich Hospital can refer to:*Greenwich Hospital , USA*Greenwich Hospital , UK...
. The painting is now in the collection of the National Maritime Museum
National Maritime Museum
The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England is the leading maritime museum of the United Kingdom and may be the largest museum of its kind in the world. The historic buildings forming part of the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site, it also incorporates the Royal Observatory, Greenwich,...
in Greenwich
Greenwich
Greenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...
, London.