Kamehameha III, King of Hawaii

Manuscript document in English and Hawaiian, 4-page bifolia (12 1/2 x 7 3/4 in.; 318 x 198 mm), signed twice ("Kamehameha"), the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President of the House of Nobles, and others, Honolulu, 6 July 1852, authorizing funds ($400) for the purchase of a portrait of Kamehameha I from the auction rooms of F. W. Thompson and an additional $40 for the framing thereof, bifolia stitched together with red silk ribbon; minor marginal dampstaining on terminal leaf.

Authorizing the purchase of the portrait of the first king of Hawaii, Kamehameha I. In 1817, the artist Louis Choris, who accompanied Kotzebue on his expedition (see Lot 120),  painted the now famous portrait of King Kamehameha I in his Western-style red jacket with epaulets of gold bullion.  It is one of only two known portraits of him known to have been made from life.