Joseph Dufour. Tonga. 1804.

Joseph Dufour et Cie (est. 1797)

Tonga

From: “Les Sauvages de la Mer Pacifique” or “Les Voyages du Capitaine Cook”*
Designed by Jean-Gabriel Charvet (1750–1829)
Mâcon and Paris, France: 1804–1805 Block-printed wallpaper

Dimensions: 69" x 62"

This commanding panel from Les Sauvages de la Mer Pacifique portrays King Fatafehi Paulaho of Tongatapu, the paramount chief of Tonga, seated with his favored wife beneath a majestic banana tree. Before them, a ceremonial wrestling match unfolds in full vigor — with athletes in dynamic poses, flanked by musicians, attendants, and lines of dignitaries. The scene is alive with energy and ritual, conveying both the physicality of the contest and the carefully choreographed formality of a royal audience.

The composition balances verdant tropical flora with the highly ordered human figures, echoing the Enlightenment-era fascination with societies perceived as both “natural” and noble. Rendered in vivid color and precise detail, the panel captures the essence of Tonga's courtly life at a moment when Polynesian hierarchy and ritual held deep symbolic meaning.

Historical and Cultural Context: When Captain James Cook visited Tonga in the 1770s, he was struck by the grandeur and refinement of its political and ceremonial systems — so much so that he dubbed the islands the “Friendly Isles.” The Tongan aristocracy, especially King Paulaho, impressed European observers with their command of public spectacle, diplomacy, and social organization. Wrestling matches such as the one depicted here were not mere sport; they were political theater — expressions of strength, alliance, and royal prestige.
In this panel, Jean-Gabriel Charvet and the team at Dufour & Cie transformed Cook’s ethnographic observations into a grand neoclassical tableau, idealizing Tonga not as a curiosity but as a civilization worthy of admiration. The result is one of the most balanced and celebratory panels in the series — a tribute to Polynesian sovereignty and the Enlightenment imagination.