THE COLLECTION
Every picture in the museum
511 pictures across 45 chapters. Each one keeps the credit and licence of the collection it came from, and links back to that record.
Voyagers and canoes
The drua, Fiji’s great double canoe Before 1900 · 13 pictures
The drua Navukinavanua, described as Ratu Seru Cakobau’s last war canoe — 19th-century photograph
Fijian double canoe in full sail — 19th-century engraving “from an old block”
By the mid-19th century some drua measured 30 metres in length and were capable of carrying over 100 men. (1856)
Model of a Fijian double canoe (drua), Otago Museum
Fijian druas (1913)
Fijians on a drua (double-hulled canoe), 1800s
Photograph of sailing canoe or "drua" in the Fiji Museum in Suva, Fiji. (1962)
Edward Gennys Fanshawe, Double canoe off Moalu, Feejee Islands, Septr 26th 1849 (Fiji)
Fijian double hulled canoe 1849
A Fijian double canoe of the 19th century (published 1925)
Fijian canoe, schematic diagram (1858)
Fijian canoe, drawing (1858)
Canoe of the people of "Balahou", Fiji — from Dumont d'Urville's voyage atlas (1842)
Camakau and outrigger canoes Everyday sailing · 11 pictures
Fijian sailing canoe with its crew — 19th-century lithograph
Camakau, Sailing Canoe - Fiji (2010)
Fijian Sailing Canoe
Small sailing canoe, Fiji (about 1900)
Canoe at Suva, Fiji (about 1900)
Canoe racing, Fiji — stereograph card (about 1920)
Fijian canoe under sail at Levuka, May 1903
Fijian Canoe raft, Fiji, by Henry Winkelmann. (1903)
Vue de l' Ile Kandabon. (Arehipel des Viti.) (1833)
Edward Gennys Fanshawe, Ambau or M'bau (Bau), Feejee Islands, Octr 1849 (Fiji)
Fiji postage stamp, 1938, showing King George VI and an outrigger canoe
Voyaging between Fiji, Tonga and Samoa Centuries of exchange · 12 pictures
A Fijian double canoe under sail near low islands — 19th-century engraving
Tupaia's chart of the islands surrounding Tahiti in Oceania (1769)
Polynesian triangle stretching from New Zealand in the south to Easter Island in the east and Hawaii in the north. (2010)
A photograph of a recreation of the star compass of Mau Piailug depicted with shells on sand, with Satawalese (See Trukic languages ) text labels, (2010)
Hōkūle`a, a modern Hawaiian wa'a kaulua or voyaging canoe, sailing off Honolulu, photo taken from onboard the Chinese junk Princess Taiping , January 22, 2009.
Large traditional double-hulled vaka in Rarotonga. (2010)
Map of Oceania (2008)
Mago Island, Lau Group, eastern Fiji (2000)
NASA astronaut image of the Yagasa Cluster as part of the Lau Archipelago in Fiji (2001)
NASA astronaut image of Moce Island with Karoni Islet and Na Potu Reef, Lau Archipelago, Fiji (2011)
Naitaba (Lau-Islands) (1999)
Water bottle, Lau - Otago Museum - Dunedin, NZ (2024)
First settlement
The Lapita people About 3,000 years ago · 28 pictures
Lapita pottery, Vanuatu Cultural Centre, Port Vila, Vanuatu (2013)
Reconstructed Lapita woman, National Museum of Ethnology, Osaka
Plaster cast of a Lapita pot sherd — Metropolitan Museum of Art
map of lapita area (2008)
Prehistoric pottery vessels, including some with Lapita designs, from the island of Taumako (1982)
Plaster cast of a Lapita dish — Metropolitan Museum of Art
Decorated Lapita potsherd from Bourewa, Fiji (2008)
Part of a 3000-year old pot rim, dentate-stamped and lime infilled, found at the Bourewa site, probably Fiji's earliest (2008)
Lapita potsherd from Fiji with a face design (2008)
Display of objects of the Lapita culture, Otago Museum, 2016-01-29
The Mana burial at Naitabale, Moturiki — one of the few Lapita-age skeletons ever found
Close-up of the skull of Mana, the Lapita lady found on Moturiki Island, Fiji, and dated to 800 BC (2004)
Reconstructed head of Mana, the first and only representation of a Lapita person - head is in the Fiji Museum (and we had to guess the hair type!) (2005)
Walking along the sand dunes at Sigatoka (2011)
Sigatoka Sand Dunes National Park, Viti Levu, Fiji (2026)
Sigatoka Sand Dunes National Park, Viti Levu, Fiji (2026)
Sigatoka Sand Dunes National Park, Viti Levu, Fiji (2026)
Bourewa Beach, Fiji, with horses (2009)
Hippopus hippopus (giant clam) exposed in 2800-year old shell midden, Bourewa, Fiji - these clams disappear from Fiji about this time, a result of sea-level fall and human predation (2008)
Hippopus hippopus (giant clam) from 2800-year old shell midden, Bourewa, Fiji - (2008)
Bourewa archaeological site (Fiji) excavated pits in 2009 - most artefacts are in the shell midden, through which most pits were dug
Sieving finds at the Bourewa excavation (2009)
Bourewa archaeological site (Fiji) excavated pits in 2009
Discovered in December 2004 by Patrick Nunn, Sepeti Matararaba and Roselyn Kumar, the Bourewa site is believed to be Fiji's earliest settlement, established as much as 3100 years ago
Bourewa archaeological site, excavated pits (2009)
Bourewa archaeological site, excavated pits (2009)
Drilled shell and bone and seed beads from the Lapita site at Bourewa in Fiji (2008)
Lapita people made and wore shell jewellery (2008)
Fijian pottery through time From Lapita to today · 10 pictures
Fijian Pottery (Boston. Congregational Publishing Society, 1871)
Pottery vessel, Fiji, 19th century pic1 (2020)
Pottery vessel, Fiji, 19th century pic2 (2020)
Pottery vessel, Fiji, 19th century pic3 (2020)
Pottery vessel, Fiji, 19th century pic4 (2020)
Kava pot, Fiji, collected by the United States South Seas Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842, ceramic - Pacific collection - Peabody Museum, Harvard University
Kava pot, Fiji, collected by the United States South Seas Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842, ceramic - Pacific collection - Peabody Museum, Harvard University
Kava pot, Fiji, collected by the United States South Seas Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842, ceramic - Pacific collection - Peabody Museum, Harvard University
Pot, Fiji, ceramic - Otago Museum - Dunedin, NZ (2024)
Photograph of an unidentified Fiji pot in Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, United States. (1958)
Land and kinship
The village and the bure Village life · 11 pictures
Bure of Na Tavasara, Taveuni (Boston. Congregational Publishing Society, 1871)
A bure in Navala village (2007)
Bure of Na Vata-ni-Tawake, Mbau (Boston. Congregational Publishing Society, 1871)
A bure on Viti Levu, photographed in 1907 (ETH Library Zurich)
Traditional Fijian house and open space in Tubou Village, Lakeba. (1977)
Traditional Fijian house and open space in Tubou Village, Lakeba. (1977)
A bure (hut) in the village of Navala, Viti Levu, Fiji. (1998)
Navala village, Viti Levu, Fiji. (1998)
Fijian chief's house on a double-stepped housemound, probably in the village of Navala, in the Vitilevu Highlands, Fiji
Navala Village - Nausori Highlands - Fiji (2010)
Thatching a Roof - Navala Village - Fiji (2010)
Clans and chiefs Yavusa · mataqali · tokatoka · 10 pictures
Ratu Epeli, head chief of Fiji, in 1899 (Popular Science Monthly)
Tui Levuka, chief of Levuka — illustration from Charles Erskine's Twenty Years Before the Mast (1896)
Photograph of Ratu Tevita with fly whisk, Chief of Lakemba, Fiji. (1860)
Fijian chiefs — photograph by Menzies Dickson (1860s)
Fijian Chief (1898)
Ratu Timoci Tavanavanua, second son of Cakobau — photograph by Francis H. Dufty (1870s)
Two daughters of Cakobau and Adi Litia, wearing smocks and skirts. (1870)
Ratu Vakaruru A Chief of Viti Levu (1862)
Ratu Golea, chief of Savusavu (2015)
The chiefly bure (house) of Taukei Gusuituva, Vusama, Fiji (1999)
Yaqona and ceremony Welcome · respect · 10 pictures
Fijian kava ceremony being performed for tourists (2015)
Traditional Fijian bundle of kava roots used for presentations in cultural rituals such as official welcoming, funerals, reconciliation ceremonies; etc. (2010)
VANUA LEVU, Fiji Fijian tribe elders perform a kava ceremony for the crew of the hospital ship USNS Mercy during Pacific Partnership 2015.
Fijian warriors mix kava during the traditional portion of the closing ceremony festivities for Exercise Cartwheel at Blackrock Training Camp, Fiji, September 23, 2022.
Dave ni yaqona — ceremonial kava dish, Fiji
Dave ni yaqona — ceremonial kava dish, Fiji (detail)
Kava bowl (tanoa), Fiji, about 1900 — Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Kava bowl, 1 of 2, Fiji - Canterbury Museum - Christchurch, NZ (2024)
Fijian PM gifts John Kerry a Tanoa at the 2023 Our Ocean Conference in Panama
A beautiful traditional welcome ceremony (sevusevu) was accorded to the Pacific Mission delegation, marking the start of the Suva leg of their visit. (2023)
Forests and the land Vesi · banyan · bush · 11 pictures
Intsia bijuga (kwila, ipil) trunk with large buttresses in Indonesia (2017)
Ipil (Ripe seed pods of Intsia bijuga ) at Cape Tribulation , Queensland (2022)
Intsia bijuga - unseasonal flowering in Cairns, Queensland (2024)
Taveuni Forest, Fiji (2008)
Forested hillside of west side of Vanua Balavu, looking west towards Kanacea Island (1977)
Fijian village, forest on raised coral limestone (1977)
Forest patches and a recent burn-off on the main ridge of Vanua Balavu. (1977)
Forests of Fiji (2014)
Forests of Fiji (2014)
Forests of Fiji (2014)
Pacific kingfisher ( Todiramphus sacer ). (2022)
Living craft
Masi — bark cloth Made by hand · 10 pictures
Wedding bark cloth (gatu vakaviti), Fiji, 19th century — Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Fijian royal tapa cloth, 19th century, Neiman Marcus Collection, Honolulu store (2014)
Masi (bark cloth), Fiji, Island of Oneata Lau, 20th century, Honolulu Academy of Arts (2012)
Masi (barkcloth) from Fiji, 20th century, Honolulu Museum of Art (2012)
Barkcloth ( masi ), Fiji, Bishop Museum, accession 1456.008.036 (2013)
Fijian royal tapa cloth, 19th century, Neiman Marcus Collection, Honolulu store (2014)
Masi kesa (painted Fijian bark cloth), 20th century, Honolulu Museum of Art Lending Collection, L.2023-18-01
Masi kesa (painted bark cloth), Fiji, about 1850–90 — shown at the National Museum of Qatar
Masi kesa (painted bark cloth), Fiji, about 1850–90 — second view
Tapa cloth with black designs and fringe, Fiji, collected 1930 - Pacific collection - Peabody Museum, Harvard University
The lali drum A voice for the village · 10 pictures
A traditional, well-used Fijian lali (wooden drum), although the old tyre underneath is possibly less traditional. (2010)
Pair of Lali drums at the Westin Hotel Resort and Spa, Denarau, Nadi, Fiji. (2012)
A Lali used by the Wesleyan Methodis church in Suva, Fiji. (2007)
Lali drum in front of a shop in Vatukarasa village, Coral Coast, Fiji. (2007)
Lali drum from Fiji islands. (2015)
Lali Drum, Villa 38, Pacific Harbour, Fiji (2009)
A Fijian drummer — illustration from Charles Erskine's Twenty Years Before the Mast (1896)
Fijian children playing on wooden drum (2006)
A lali being beaten — real-photo postcard, Caine series, Suva (1913)
Fijian drummer, 19th-century engraving
Tabua — the whale’s tooth The most valued gift · 10 pictures
Tooth of a sperm whale (2008)
Whale's tooth from Fiji. Photo taken at The Museum of Lincolnshire Life, Lincoln, England. (2011)
Pendant (tabua), Fiji, c. 1835-1840, Honolulu Museum of Art, 4972.1
Whale tooth used as currency on the Fiji islands. (2022)
Tabua (ceremonial whale tooth), Fiji, maker unknown, 1800s, sperm whale tooth, coconut husk fibre, pandanus - Wellington Museum - Wellington, NZ (2024)
Tabua, Fiji, given in 1911, whale tooth - Otago Museum - Dunedin, NZ
Tabua, Fiji, whale tooth - Otago Museum - Dunedin, NZ (2024)
Tabua from Fiji at the Jaffna museum, Sri Lanka (2012)
Necklace of sperm-whale teeth, about 1895 – Munich ethnology museum
The same necklace, second view
Clubs, bowls and headrests Carving · 10 pictures
A Fijian war club (possibly ceremonial) in the stores of Bedford Museum. (2010)
Edward Gennys Fanshawe, Clubs from Feejee (Fiji) and Navigators' (Islands, (Samoa)) (1849)
Clubs, Fiji Islands, wood - Pacific collection - Peabody Museum, Harvard University (2012)
Club ( Vunikau Vulibuli Vonotabua or Dromu Vonotabua ), early 19th century, Fiji Culture, wood, whale ivory, 30 1/2 in. (2013)
Fijian War Club in Museum of Methodism (1899)
Club totokia, Fiji, 19th century (2020)
Fijian club, tokokia, from Fiji, 19th century CE. National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK (2015)
War clubs from Fiji at Museu Nacional, Quinta da boa vista 159 (2009)
Fijian headrest, wood — Metropolitan Museum of Art
Headrest with bamboo bar, Fiji - Otago Museum - Dunedin, NZ (2024)
Explorers
Abel Tasman sights Fiji, 1643 1643 · 10 pictures
Map of Abel Tasman's voyages
Early Dutch map of the lands found on Tasman's voyages — State Library of New South Wales
Woodcut by Isaack Gilsemans from Abel Tasman's journal, 1642–43
Woodcut by Gilsemans (?) from ship diary by Abel Tasman , showing both ships in the bay (A), the inhabitants of Tongatapu with presents (B and E), showing their cano (C), how they fish (D), and where
Portrait of Abel Tasman, his wife and daughter
A view of the Murderers' Bay, as you are at anchor here in 15 fathom (text upper left). (1642)
Chart of the north-west coast of the South Island, New Zealand, Huijdecoper journal of Abel Tasman, Hessel Gerritsz, 1643, drawing, State Library of New South Wales, Safe 1/72
Coastal drawings of Tasmania, Huijdecoper journal of Abel Tasman, Hessel Gerritsz, December 1642, drawing, State Library of New South Wales, Safe 1/72
Abel Janssen Tasman, Navigateur en Australie. (1850)
Tracing of a chart from Abel Tasman's voyages
James Cook at Vatoa, 1774 1774 · 11 pictures
Hodges, William, 1744-1797 :The ice islands, seen the 9th of Janry., 1773
Map showing the second voyage of Captain James Cook. (2008)
Resolution and Adventure with fishing craft in Matavai Bay , painted by William Hodges in 1776, shows the two ships of Commander James Cook's second voyage of exploration in the Pacific at anchor in T
Captain Cook's ship's Resolution and Adventure taking in ice for water, 4 Jan, 1773, William Hodges , from original watercolour, State Library of New South Wales, SAFE/PXD 11
James Cook's portrait by William Hodges (1775)
Portrait of James Cook (1775)
James Cook , by John Webber (died 1793).
James Cook — line engraving by J. K. Sherwin after Nathaniel Dance (1784)
A book written by James Cook — Canterbury Museum
Captain James Cook, 1728-79 A three-quarter-length portrait of Captain Cook, seated to the left, facing the right.
Captain James Cook, F.R.S. LCCN2002699852 (1777)
William Bligh’s voyages, 1789 and 1792 1789 · 1792 · 10 pictures
Colour portrait of William Bligh , British naval officer. (1792)
Page one of the list of those involved in the Mutiny of the HMS Bounty . (1789)
Depiction of the Mutiny on the Bounty (1841)
Labeled map of the voyages of HMS Bounty in the south Pacific: voyage prior to mutiny is red, voyage of Bounty after mutiny is yellow, voyage of Bligh and others in the longboat is green. (2009)
The rudder of HMS Bounty, displayed at the Fiji Museum in Suva
June 14, Log of the Proceedings of His Majesty's Ship Bounty, 5 Apr. (1789)
Portrait of Rear Admiral William Bligh by Alexander Huey, en:1814
Transplanting of the breadfruit trees from Otaheite, 1796, Thomas Gosse, coloured mezzotint, State Library of New South Wales, DL Pg 51
The launch of HMS Bounty, the boat in which Captain Bligh and 18 loyal crew were cast adrift after the mutiny (1792)
The Mutineers turning Lieut Bligh and part of the Officers and Crew adrift from His Majesty's Ship the Bounty [ 29 April 1789] HM sloop 'Bounty' was a small West Indiaman of 250 tons, previously calle
The Wilkes Expedition, 1840 1840 · 12 pictures
A club dance watched by officers of the United States Exploring Expedition — 19th-century engraving
USS Vincennes in Disappointment Bay (1845)
The killing of Lieutenant Underwood and Midshipman Wilkes Henry at Malolo, 1840 — illustration from Twenty Years Before the Mast (1896)
Charles Wilkes, commander of the United States Exploring Expedition
A "Feejee" clown dancing as the opening act of a Meke I Wau Club Dance that took place in Fiji on Ovalau Island in Levuka village on June 24th 1840 during the United States Exploring Expedition
Asaua or Western Group, Feejee (Fiji) Islands, by the U.S.Ex.Ex. 1840.
Eastern Group, Feejee (Fiji) Islands, by the U.S.Ex.Ex. 1840.
Island of Ovolau (Ovalau), Feejee (Fiji) Group by the U.S.Ex.Ex. 1841. Harbour of Levuka, Island of Ovolau.
Chart of the Viti Group or Feejee Islands by the U.S. Ex. Ex. Charles Wilkes Esq. Commander. 1840. Eng. by Sherman & Smith
Club dance, Feejee. (Drawn by) J. Drayton. Endg. by Rawdon, Wright & Hatch. (Philadelphia- Lea & Blanchard. 1845)
Observatory Peak, Feejee Is. (Drawn by) A.T. Agate. (Engraved by) Jordan & Halpin. (Philadelphia- Lea & Blanchard. 1845)
Tombs at Muthuata I., Feejee. Drawn by A.T. Agate. Engraved by J. Smillie. (Philadelphia- Lea & Blanchard. 1845)
Traders and Levuka
The sandalwood rush About 1804 to 1814 · 10 pictures
Leaves, flowers, fruit of the Pacific sandalwood tree (2017)
M'Bua or Sandalwood Bay, Island of Vanua Levu, Feejee (Fiji) Group by the U.S.Ex.Ex. 1840.
The Thirteen Factories at Guangzhou c. (1780)
Canton (Guangzhou), Die Hongs oder die ausländischen Factoreien am Perlfluß in Canton. (1850)
An export painting of the Thirteen Factories at Guangzhou . (1820)
A reverse-glass export painting of the Thirteen Factories in Guangzhou China in 1805
Chinese - View of the Hongs of Canton - Walters 35111 (1800)
Canton Waterfront (The Hongs at Canton) MET ADA4614 (1840)
View of the Hongs, Canton (1850)
Canton Warehouses On The Pearl River, circa 1850 Showing the American, British, French and Danish flags over their respective factory houses, the Pearl River traffic bustles beneath the shore of Canto
Bêche-de-mer, whalers and beachcombers 1800s to 1850s · 11 pictures
Bêche-de-mer boat moored at Townsville, Australia (1924)
Beche-de-mer luggers, Cooktown, North Queensland, ca. (1906)
Fishing for and curing sea cucumbers in the Indian Ocean (1868)
Sea cucumber in Fiji (2004)
Sea cucumber (Thelenota anax) on a Fijian reef (2012)
Schooner with three dories — drawing by Winslow Homer (1880)
Whale chart of the world's whaling grounds — Matthew Fontaine Maury
The whaleship Niantic — Chinese export painting
Robert Salmon - South Sea Whale Fishing II (1831)
The Whaling Ship Pacific by William Duke 1848 Art Gallery of South Australia 20065P29
Group portrait of Fijians and Tongans, with Charles Wise, consular interpreter (centre), at Levuka, Fiji. (1861)
Levuka, the first capital 1820s to 1882 · 10 pictures
Sacred Heart Church, Levuka , Fiji (2000)
Beach Street, Levuka (2000)
Levuka ("Lebouka") — Dumont d'Urville's voyage atlas (1840s)
Levuka ("Lebouka") — Dumont d'Urville's voyage atlas (1840s), second view
Interieur d'une case a Lebouka. (1842)
Village de Lebouka. Atlas pittoresque, planche 89 (actuellement Levuka) (1846)
A street in Levuka (2000)
Church of our Holy Redeemer, Levuka, Fiji (2013)
Church of our Holy Redeemer, Levuka, Fiji (2013)
View of south side of the Fijian island of Ovalau (2000)
Faith and language
Old gods and the missionaries Before and after 1835 · 15 pictures
Bure Kalu - A Fijian Temple at the Polynesian Cultural Centre in Hawaii. (2005)
Polynesian Cultural Center - Bure Kalou (House of God) (2013)
Fiji temple mbure kalou (1878)
Takiveleyawa, a hill which figures in Fijian mythology relating to the underworld. (1858)
View of the house enclosing the grave of Rev. William Cross, and the principal heathen temple, at Somosomo, Feejee (IV, November 1847, p.120) - Copy
Handwritten journal of a missionary to Fiji — Derby Museum
The House in Which Mr. Cross was Buried - Aunt Elizabeth's Missionary Voyage (p.17, February 1859, XVI)
The Chapel the Fijians Built - Aunt Elizabeth's Missionary Voyage (p.19, February 1859, XVI)
Chart of part of the Feejee Islands, Explored by Captain James Wilson in the ship Duff. (1799)
Portrait of Fijian missionary Mary Ann Lyth, [ca 1855-ca 1865], hand coloured Daguerreotype, State Library of New South Wales, MIN 550
Tomb of Rev. John Hunt, Vewa, Feejee (VII, p.66, June 1850)
Edward Gennys Fanshawe, Vewa, Feejee Islands, Octr 1849 (Fiji)
Wesleyan-Chapel at Vewa, Feejee (VII, p.50, May 1850)
A Sleeping Buri, Built at Vewa, For the favourite little son of Namosemalua, Feejee (October 1852, p.108, IX)
Viwa island, in the waters of Bau (about 1885) — Rijksmuseum
Churches, schools and written Fijian Alphabet · printing · congregations · 12 pictures
Suva Fiji Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . (2007)
A village church in Wainibuka, Tailevu, Fiji. (2013)
cover of the 1987 edition of the Book of Mormon in the Fijian language; title is "Ai Vola i Momani"
Indians after church, Fiji (2013)
Pupils and staff, Church of England, Indian Mission School, Fiji (2013)
The villagers gather, outside of the church, Fiji (2013)
Indian deacon of the church, Fiji (2013)
Methodist Church, Lautoka, Fiji (2013)
St. Paul's Church, on the outer island of Fiji (2013)
Melanesian village church, Fiji (2013)
Parish Hall, Suva, Fiji (2013)
Melanesian scholars in Bible play, Suva, Fiji (2013)
Power and resistance
Bau and Cakobau About 1815 to 1883 · 13 pictures
Seru Epenisa Cakobau in old age — historical photograph
"Thakombau [Cakobau], Vu-ni-valu, King of Mbau [Bau] Fiji. (1858)
Obelisk in Suva in memory of Cakobau (May 1903)
Statue to Ratu Epenisa Seru Cakobau Vunivalu and Tui Viti d. (2022)
Portrait of Seru Epenisa Cakobau, Fiji, ca. 1875, by Francis Herbert Dufty
Cakobau in western clothing, between 1870 and 1879.
Native meeting after Thakombau's funeral in Fiji. (1903)
Edward Gennys Fanshawe, Seru Thakombau (Seru Epenisa Cakobau), 1815 - 83; King of Fiji, 1852-74
"King Thakombau, 1876, and Autograph" Frontispiece.
Photograph of Ratu Cakobau (Thakombau). (1869)
Photograph of Ratu Cakobau (Thakombau). (1869)
Seated portrait of Thakombau, king of the Fijian group and his son (possibly Ratu Epeli Nailatikau). (1861)
Sketch of Thakombau (Cakobau), possibly made by one of the author Christian missionary Thomas Williams in the 1850s, published in 1871.
War and warriors Confederacies at war · 13 pictures
Seated man holding a club — historical portrait supplied to the museum
Men of Fiji around a figure lying on the ground — early photograph, probably a staged scene (awaiting cultural review)
Men carrying clubs, with a figure lying in the grass — early photograph, probably a staged scene (awaiting cultural review)
A Fijian warrior. (1900)
Portrait of two warriors photographed in Fiji in 1884 by Alfred Burton.
Fijian man holding a club, photograph by Burton Brothers, 1884, b&w negative
Young Fijian warriors — postcard, Caine series, Suva (1913)
Portraits of a warrior (left) and a young woman (right), Fiji
Edward Gennys Fanshawe, Spears from Feejee (Fiji) & New Hebrides (1849)
Fijian Islander holding spear (Pulman and Son) (1870)
Gata war club from Fiji — Museu Nacional, Rio de Janeiro
Bulibuli throwing club from Fiji — Museu Nacional, Rio de Janeiro
Culacula war club from Fiji — Museu Nacional, Rio de Janeiro
Hill forts and the highlands Defended ridges · 10 pictures
The vista at the top of Tuvuni Hill Fort overlooking Sigatoka Valley, Sigatoka, Coral Coast, Fiji (2017)
Singatoka, Fiji: view north along Sigatoka Valley Road (2015)
Singatoka, Fiji: view south along Sigatoka Valley Road (2015)
Photograph of Tui Namosi, Kai Colo. (1860)
Tui Namosi and attendant, carte de visite by Francis Herbert Dufty (1872)
A man from Namosi, Viti Levu — KITLV collection
Koro Wai-Wai Namosi, Fiji (2013)
Approach to Namosi Village, Fiji (2013)
Namosi, Fiji (2013)
Aerial photograph of mountain ranges on the largest Fiji island, Viti Levu. (1962)
Ma’afu and the Battle of Kaba 1848 to 1874 · 12 pictures
Enele Ma'afu, Tui Lau, leader of the Tongans in Fiji, died 1881.
Ma'afu's son Charley (Sialeʻataongo) and his cousin Adi Tupoutu'a. (1870)
Ma'afu and retinue, Vanuabalavu (1881)
Ma'afu with Fifita, Alisi, Makau and Josefini (1881)
Group seated portrait of Maafu, head of the Tongans resident in Fiji, his wife and their child. (1861)
Enele Ma'afu, Tui Lau, leader of the Tongans in Fiji. (1881)
Enele Maʻafu, Tongan chief, Fiji, ca. (1870)
Enele Ma'afu, Tui Lau, leader of the Tongans in Fiji. (1881)
Enele Ma'afu, Tui Lau, leader of the Tongans in Fiji. (1870)
Ma’afuotu’itonga, the Tongan chief and Tui Lau who controlled parts of Eastern Fiji from his base on Vanua Balavu. (1876)
Enele Ma'afu, Tui Lau, leader of the Tongans in Fiji. (1881)
Enele Ma'afu, Tui Lau, leader of the Tongans in Fiji. (1881)
Colonial Roots
The Kingdom of Fiji 1871 to 1874 · 10 pictures
This is what the flag of the Kingdom of Fiji looked like from 1871 to 1874 before the British colonized them.
The 1871 “CR” postage stamp of the Kingdom of Fiji, 1 penny
Admiralty Chart No 2691 Fiji Islands, Published 1879
Ratu Timothy, second son of Cakobau
Tui Viti Cakobau — portrait by Henry Hume Turnbull (1850s)
Ten Fijian dollar Treasury Note, payable at Levuka , issued 14 February 1872.
Thakombau, ex-king of Fiji, photograph by Dufty (1874)
Photograph of Ratu Cakobau (Thakombau). (1869)
Cakobau, ex-King of Fiji — photograph by Francis H. Dufty (1870s)
The late King Cakobau — photograph by Francis H. Dufty
The Deed of Cession 10 October 1874 · 10 pictures
Map of the world in 1897, with British possessions coloured red
Tui Levuka Kolinio Rokotunaceva at a re-enactment of the Deed of Cession, October 2006
Sir Hercules Robinson (left) with Sir George Bowen and Sir Anthony Musgrave (1870s)
Sir Hercules Robinson — portrait published in 1908
Sir Hercules Robinson, Freeman Brothers Studio, 1872-1879
Proclamation by Sir Hercules Robinson — Archives New Zealand
Portrait of Sir Hercules Robinson at the Hong Kong Museum of History (2020)
Sir Hercules Robinson — illustration (1900)
Nasova House in Levuka Fiji (2000)
Map of the Fiji Islands — Edward Stanford, London
Governor Gordon and the new order 1875 to 1880 · 10 pictures
Arthur Hamilton-Gordon (1870)
Coat of arms of Arthur Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Baron Stanmore
Presidential palace, Suva (2015)
Governors House (Suva, Fiji) (2015)
Government House, Suva
Photograph of the Government House in Suva, Fiji. (1962)
Great Council of Chiefs, Waikava. (1876)
Sir Arthur Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Baron Stanmore — portrait
Nairukuruku Village on Wainimala River, Fiji by Constance Gordon-Cumming (1875)
Walu Bay, Fiji, seen from the north-east (19th-century photograph)
Plantations and the labour trade 1860s to 1911 · 11 pictures
Vanuatuan recruits for sugar plantations in Australia, Vanuatu, c. (1910)
Para (ship) South Sea Islanders, recruited for the Queensland cane fields, being carried in boats to the Para . (1894)
Seizure of the blackbirding schooner Daphne and its cargo by the HMS Rosario in 1869.
Ni-Vanuatu (New Hebridean) workers in Nouméa, New Caledonia
Adolescent Pacific Island workers on the Lower Herbert River in the early 1870s
Pacific Island labourers on a Queensland sugar plantation (1890s)
Loading cane at a sugar plantation on Mago island, Fiji. (1884)
Plantation on Ovalau, one of the Fiji islands.
Taveuni, Fiji, abandoned copra plantation (2008)
Men loading bags of copra and other crops onto an inter-island vessel at Lomaloma wharf, Vanua Balavu, for markets in Suva. (2014)
Fiji. Landscape with view of bure (houses) and sugar cane plantation.
Suva becomes the capital 1882 · 10 pictures
People gathering at the wharf of Suva, Fiji, c. (1900)
The Duke and Duchess of York (later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth) at Suva, February 1927
The Duke and Duchess of York at Suva, February 1927
The royal visit to Suva, February 1927
The Government Buildings of Fiji, July 2014
The Government Buildings in Suva Fiji , the next home to the Fiji Parliament after the elections.. (2014)
Gouvernment Building (Suva) (2015)
Front view of the Fijian parliament building from the far side of Albert Park, Suva. (1942)
The harbour, Suva, Fiji (1920)
Postcard from Suva, Fiji from late 1940s or early 1950s
Girmit
The arrival of the Leonidas 14 May 1879 · 10 pictures
The emigrant ship Volga II, which carried indentured labourers — 19th-century oil painting (Royal Museums Greenwich)
The emigrant ships Mersey and Volga II in a gale — 19th-century oil painting (Royal Museums Greenwich)
The emigrant ships Mersey and Volga II in a gale — 19th-century oil painting (Royal Museums Greenwich)
Levuka (1873)
Nautical chart of Suva Harbour to Levuka with the adjacent islands to the eastward, Fiji Islands. (1882)
View of Levuka – old capital of Fiji (2013)
Levuka from the east (about 1885) — Rijksmuseum
Nukulau and Mokaluva islands (about 1885) — Rijksmuseum
North shore of Nukulau island (about 1885) — Rijksmuseum
Nautical chart of Nukulau Island to Namuka Island, including Lauthala, Suva and Namuka Harbs., Fiji Islands. (1876)
Recruitment and the agreement 1879 to 1916 · 10 pictures
Plaques of Indenture Memorial, Kidderepore (2018)
Newly arrived Indian indentured labourers in Trinidad, about 1897
Indenture Memorial, Kidderepore (2017)
"Calcutta from Garden House Reach," by William Daniell, from The Oriental Annual or Scenes ofIndia (London: Bull and Churton, 1835*Source: ebay, Mar.
Garden Reach, Calcutta, HMS Calliope saluting 1841, by Francis Meynell R.N.
Water-colour drawing of the view of Calcutta from Garden Reach after Thomas and William Daniell dated c.1810.
'In the Garden House Reach, Calcutta', c1786-1791, by William Daniell From the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.
William Hodges - View of Calcutta from Garden House Reach - B1978.43.1779 - Yale Center for British Art
Charles D'Oyly - Garden Reach - Calcutta - B1977.18.2 - Yale Center for British Art
Indian indentured labourers on a sugar estate in Mauritius, 1870.
Life in the lines On the plantations · 13 pictures
Indian Women, Fiji (2013)
Indian women, Fiji (2013)
Sugar cane plantation with two labourers and a bullock team, Fiji
Sugar cane plantation with two labourers, Fiji — second view
Fijian men, an Indo-Fijian man and boys beside cut sugar cane
Fijian men, an Indo-Fijian man and boys beside cut sugar cane — second view
Indian girl, Fiji (2013)
Indian ladies, Fiji (2013)
Indian boy, Fiji (2013)
Indian couple, Fiji (2013)
Indian community, Fiji (2013)
Indian community, Fiji (2013)
South Sea Islander cane cutters on a sugar cane plantation in Queensland, Australia, about 1900.
Sugar and the CSR 1882 onwards · 10 pictures
The Fiji Sugar Corporation Mill, Penang, Rakiraki. (2013)
Sugar mill, near, Lautoka, Fiji (2013)
Fiji Sugar Corporation No 21 crossing Nadi Back Road into the cane fields with empty wagons (2008)
Fiji Sugar Corporation loco no 11 entering Lautoka with a train of c.45 loaded cane wagons (2008)
Sugar Cane Train (2003)
Ba, Fiji, with sugar cane train on railway track on the road, shops, people and vehicles. Ref WA-22181-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. Record No 22897014 (1949)
The Rarawai sugar mill near Ba, Viti Levu (about 1970)
Fiji Sugar Canes (2008)
All aboard - This little train in the sugar fields of the Fiji Islands in the world's only free train ride ( Copley News Service , 13 July 1970)
Sugar cane, Fiji (2013)
Ending indenture 1914 to 1920 · 10 pictures
The bust of C.F.Andrews (1871-1940), Anglican priest and friend of the Mahatma Gandhi.
C F Andrews 1920
Charles Freer Andrews in art — Dinabandhu Andrews College (2022)
Charles Freer Andrews in art — Dinabandhu Andrews College (2022), second view
Charles Freer Andrews (1871–1940)
Gandhi during the visit of Indian political leader Gopal Krishna Gokhale to South Africa, Durban, 1912.
Gandhi's reception to Gokhale, Natal, South Africa. (1912)
Indian National Congress leaders, Bombay, December 1904
A memorial in South Mumbai commemorating Gopal Krishna Gokhale, CIE (Companion of The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire).
Artwork: the first Indian labourers reaching the shores of Mauritius (2021)
After girmit Communities today · 14 pictures
South Indian style Hindu temple in Fiji Hinduism in Fiji (2014)
Hindu Temple in Nadi, Fiji (2007)
Sri Siva Subramaniya Hindu temple, Nadi, Fiji (4) - August 2016
Murukan on peacock at Sri Siva Subramaniya Temple Fiji (2014)
The Imam of the Lautoka Mosque, Hafiz Musa Patel, with the US ambassador (2016)
Masjid Noor, an Ahmadiyya mosque in Suva (2004)
Mosque at Lautoka, Fiji, 1928
A new place of worship for Muslims in Fiji — Auckland Weekly News (1929)
Saris on sale in Lautoka, Fiji (2015)
Gurdwara Guru Ravidass, Nasinu, Fiji (2020)
A Map of Fiji showing dominant ethnic groups by district. (2024)
Shop in Lautoka on the island of Viti Levu, Fiji. (2016)
Indian School, Lambasa, Fiji (2013)
Young Indians and Fijians at school, Fiji (2013)
Pacific lives
Rotuma 1881 · 11 pictures
Map of Rotuma
Charles Chowe Howard, of Rotuma
Photo of MMofmanu Beach, Rotuma (2008)
Council of Chiefs of Rotuma, 1927
Satellite image of Rotuma
Map of Rotuma, north of Fiji, Melanesia, Pacific Ocean, showing district boundaries, appeared in Australian Science Journal, 1895
Two men by a tomb on Rotuma (about 1865) — Rijksmuseum
map of Rotuma, Fiji, Pacific Ocean (1898)
A man on Rotuma — KITLV collection
Admiralty Chart No 2992 Rotumah Island, Published 1897
Chief of Rotuma, drawn by Alfred Thomas Agate of the US Exploring Expedition
Banaba and Rabi 1945 · 12 pictures
sketch map of Rabi Island, Fiji, Pacific Ocean (2010)
Rabi Island, Fiji
Map of Rabi Island, Fiji, Pacific Ocean, showing villages
Banaba Island - Marplot Map with Contours (1-20,000) (2007)
Banaba (Ocean Island) seen from space (2002)
Astronaut photograph of Banaba, Kiribati, with villages and landmarks
The Pacific Phosphate Company offices on Ocean Island (Banaba)
Ocean Island Railway (later Banaba Island Railway) (1906)
Ocean Island railway, main line (1906)
Ocean Island Railway (later Banaba Island Railway) (1907)
OCEAN ISLAND, 1945-10-01. NABETARI, A GILBERTESE ISLANDER WHO LIVED AT SEA FOR 7 MONTHS WHILE ESCAPING FROM THE JAPANESE DURING THEIR OCCUPATION OF THE ISLAND.
Banabans in the Banaba island, the beginning of the 20th century (1900)
War service World War II and after · 10 pictures
Republic of Fiji Military Forces training with US soldiers for peacekeeping (2016)
Cap Badge of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces (2023)
A Fijian medical orderly administers an emergency plasma transfusion during heavy fighting on Bougainville.
Fijian soldiers of FMR (Force Mobile Reserve) visiting UNIFIL OP during a patrol (1989)
US Army Americal Division officers in the Fiji Islands, November 1943 — Signal Corps photograph
Brig. Gen. Edmund Sebree greets a Fijian chief, 29 May 1943
The Fiji Labour Corps on the Western Front, 1917-1918 King George V inspecting troops of the Fiji Labour Company (100 Fiji natives, 2 European officers and 6 European NCOs) at the Tramecourt Chateau,
Picture taken on the arrival at Suva, Fiji of the Fiji Labour Corps unit which had just finished a year's service in the Solomon's theatre of war. (1945)
Fiji Contingent To Victory Parade Has Farewell Party in Kensington Gardens, London, England, UK, 1946 Members of the Fijian contingent perform a Spear Dance in Kensington Gardens as part of their fare
The Royal Navy during the Second World War Officers and men of the Fiji class cruiser HMS MAURITIUS attend Divine Service at sea. (1939)
Democracy and its tests 1987 · 2000 · 2006 · 2014 · 10 pictures
Chambers of the Parliament of the Republic of Fiji where Members of Parliament sit to debate, pass legislation and undertake other parliamentary functions. (2019)
An exchange of notes signed at the Parliament of Fiji, March 2023
The Fiji Parliament chamber building that is part of the Government Buildings Complex on Constitution Avenue, Suva, Fiji. (2018)
Fiji Parliament House, Suva (2008)
Fijian parliament house in Suva. (2006)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the Parliament of Fiji (2014)
Parliament building, Suva (2015)
Former Parliament Building (Suva) (2015)
Front view of the Fijian parliament building from the far side of Albert Park, Suva. (1942)
The Parliament of the Republic of Fiji - March 29 2023 Sitting
Independence and living Fiji
Independence, 1970 10 October 1970 · 11 pictures
Prime Minister Kamisese Mara in Oval Office (1984)
Fiji's independence celebrations, 10 October 1970
Prince Charles in Fiji for its independence from the United Kingdom ceremony (1970)
First meeting of the South Pacific Forum, Wellington, 5 August 1971
Prime Minister Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara, his wife Lady Ro Lala Mara, and Ratu Edward Cakobau await the arrival of Prince Charles. (1970)
Flag of Fiji (vertical) (2019)
Prince Charles reading the Queen's message to the thousands that had gathered to witness this historical occasion. (1970)
Ratu Mara receives the w:en:Instruments of Independence from Prince Charles. (1970)
Kamisese shorty before he left for Oxford University (1946)
Clock Tower, Albert Park, Suva (2008)
Albert Park, Suva (2014)
Suva, the capital City life · 12 pictures
WG Friendship Plaza, Suva (2023)
Tappoo City (Suva) (2015)
Bus Route 20 at Suva, Fiji (2014)
Suva Harbour (2010)
Southern Waterfront, Suva (2010)
Diocese Of Polynesia Holy Trinity Anglican Cathedral (Suva) (2015)
The Fiji Times Building (Suva) (2015)
FBC Suva (2015)
Thurston Garden Clock Tower (2015)
Suva City Carnegie Library (2015)
The New ANZ Stadium in Suva (2013)
Suva as seen from the suburb of Delanivesi situated north of the city. (2014)
Rugby and sport Olympic gold · 12 pictures
Fiji Sevens Rugby Team at the 2009 Hong Kong Sevens
Fiji vs. Ireland, 2024 Summer Olympic rugby sevens, men's quarter-final, 2024-07-25
Fiji vs. Ireland, 2024 Summer Olympic rugby sevens, men's quarter-final, 2024-07-25
Fiji vs. Ireland, 2024 Summer Olympic rugby sevens, men's quarter-final, 2024-07-25
Fiji v Portugal in the rugby sevens gold-medal match, World Games 2009
Fiji leave the field after defeating South Africa in the final of the Rugby Sevens tournamnet at the 2005 World Games in Duisburg, Germany.
Fiji's gold medal win in Rugby Sevens is a win for all of Oceania! (2021)
Three of Fiji's Olympic gold medallists in rugby sevens (2021)
Fiji national rugby union team, 2013 IRB Pacific Nations Cup Champions
Fiji 1st Battalion rugby team v Malayan XV (1956)
Fiji 7's players before their departure for teh USA 7's 2016
Fijiana 7's players before their departure for the USA 7's 2016
Living Fiji today History continues · 10 pictures
A microfinance client selling her crafts in the market in Nadi, Fiji, 2009.
Flea Market (Suva) (2015)
Crab seller, Fiji (2011)
Lautoka markets under trees on main road, Viti Levu, Fiji - Photograph taken by William Hall Raine (1935)
Interior of Nadi Municipal Market on the island of Viti Levu, Fiji. (2016)
Sigatoka market (2019)
Nadi market (1994)
Indian market near Lautoka, Fiji (2013)
Local Fijians dance with visiting Pacific Partnership members, Suva (2023)
A Nabua villager leads a traditional Fijian Meke dance after the official opening of the Pacific Partnership 2026 Nabua Village schoolhouse building in Savusavu, Fiji, Jul.