King Kamehameha I united the Hawaiian Islands at a time when foreign influences were transforming everything around him. He managed the difficult feat of preserving traditional Hawaiian beliefs while exploiting the economic benefits of modern trade.
Kamehameha, King of the Sandwich Islands, Louis Choris, Russian 1795 – 1828, 1816,
Honolulu Museum of Art, Gift of the Honolulu Art Society, 1944 (12162b)