After Nathaniel Dance, R.A.

Mai (called Omai by the English) was a native of Ra‘iatea taken to England by Cook in 1774, the first Polynesian to visit England. Under the patronage of Lord Sandwich and Sir Joseph Banks, Mai was presented at Court, and became the lion of fashionable London. He toured the provinces with Banks, enjoyed the theatre, and learned to skate and play chess. Looked upon as a human curiosity, he was entertained by the aristocracy, examined by scientists, and sat for numerous artists, most famously for Reynolds's large 'Portrait of Omai' exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1776, the year Mai returned to Tahiti with Cook.