The 1875 Fiji cannibalism exhibition at the Colonial and Indian Exhibition

Record summary

Fijian weapons, ornaments, and representations of cannibalism circulated through nineteenth-century imperial exhibitions and museum displays after the annexation of Fiji by Britain in 1874. These displays shaped European understandings of Pacific societies while often presenting violence as a static cultural essence rather than a historically situated practice. The lead supports comparison of museum objects, missionary narratives, colonial propaganda, and later Fijian reinterpretations. Exact exhibition titles and object provenance require archival confirmation. AI-recalled; source quality 5, corroboration 0.