Tahiti

Tahiti is the largest island of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. Its people developed rich traditions of tattooing, dance and ceremonial life long before European ships arrived.

Tattoos could spread across limbs and the torso, combining bold shapes with fine patterns. Portraits of men and women show how closely the designs followed the body, alongside ornaments and clothing worn for different occasions.

Samuel Wallis reached the island in 1767. An armed confrontation was followed by more peaceful exchanges and a welcome from Purea, also called Oberea in European accounts. Such encounters helped create Europe's romantic image of an island paradise.

Iron became a prized trade item. Accounts describe sailors exchanging nails for sexual encounters—and even removing fittings from their own ship to obtain more. Behind the familiar romance were negotiations, tensions and changes that affected both visitors and island communities.