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Overview
This is a photograph of Talolo, who was the son of a matai in Vaimoso, Upolu in Samoa. He worked as a cook, provost and occasional interpreter for the Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson during his residence at Vailima in Samoa in the 1890s.
Talolo - Young Chief
Talolo is the written version of the spoken form Kalolo. Robert Louis Stevenson used Talolo in his texts. In this photograph he wears the ceremonial dress of a manaia or young chief, with an ‘ulalei (whale teeth necklace) and tuiga (headdress). He is holding a nifo'oti (cane knife). Talolo was described by a journalist as “ the handsome too handsome—Samoan chef, who would occasionally play the truant from his duties, and then Stevenson would scour the country in search of him.”
Thomas Andrew: Photographer of Samoa
This photograph is part of a large collection of images taken Thomas Andrew, a New Zealander who lived in Samoa from 1891 to 1939. Andrew is best known for his studio portraits, but he ventured well beyond that controlled environment. He photographed political events, recorded daily life, and shot idyllic scenes for the tourist market, as his diverse portfolio reveals.
References
Vailima Letters being correspondence addressed by Robert Louis Stevenson to Sidney Colvin November 1890 — October 1894 London Methuen and Co.36 Essex Street Seventh Edition. pages 306-313
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON.NEW ZEALAND HERALD, VOLUME XLIX, ISSUE 15181, 21 DECEMBER 1912, PAGE 1 (SUPPLEMENT) https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH19121221.2.176.9
This extract originally appeared in New Zealand Photography Collected: 175 Years of Photography in Aotearoa (Te Papa Press, 2025).
Talolo, from Vaimoso village on Upolu, Sāmoa, was a man of authority and influence, as suggested by his tuiga (headdress) and ‘ulālei (whale-tooth necklace) —marks of a manaia, or chief’s son. He holds a nifo‘oti, a customary weapon. Talolo learned to prepare European food and was chef for Robert Louis Stevenson, the Scottish author of Treasure Island, during the four years that Stevenson lived in Sāmoa before his death there in 1894. Talolo’s integration into European life probably made him an accessible subject for the photographer, but he could equally have commissioned a portrait for his own purposes.