CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Foto: John Davis | Reproduktion: Axel Killian
John Davis
1887 - 1919
About the object
Louisa Kronfeld (1865 – 1939)
Louisa Kronfeld (née Silveira), who is pictured in this photograph, hailed from Lotofaga, Falealili, Upolu, where she was born in 1865. Her mother, Mele Fiamē, was the daughter of Sāmoan High Chief Fiamē of Lotofaga, while her father, Augustino Silveira, was a sailor and former Catholic priest from the Portuguese island of Faial. Orphaned at a young age, Louisa was raised by Catholic nuns in Savalalo, Apia. While still in Sāmoa, she met Prussian-German trader Gustav Kronfeld who, at 20 years of age, had emigrated to Sāmoa to work for J.C. Godeffroy & Sohn. The two married in Vava‘u, Tonga, in August 1883 where he had transferred to another trading post.
Author: Charlotte Klinge, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Louisa Kronfeld (née Silveira), who is pictured in this photograph, hailed from Lotofaga, Falealili, Upolu, where she was born in 1865. Her mother, Mele Fiamē, was the daughter of Sāmoan High Chief Fiamē of Lotofaga, while her father, Augustino Silveira, was a sailor and former Catholic priest from the Portuguese island of Faial. Orphaned at a young age, Louisa was raised by Catholic nuns in Savalalo, Apia. While still in Sāmoa, she met Prussian-German trader Gustav Kronfeld who, at 20 years of age, had emigrated to Sāmoa to work for J.C. Godeffroy & Sohn. The two married in Vava‘u, Tonga, in August 1883 where he had transferred to another trading post.
Author: Charlotte Klinge, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Based on the stamp in the bottom left corner that reads “Davis”, the photograph was likely taken by English photographer John Davis in his studio in Matafele, Apia, prior to Louisa’s departure to Tonga in 1883. Its oval paper mount was common for the popular cartes de visite, which would have been reproduced to share with relatives and friends. Louisa’s European attire connotes her higher rank as a chiefly descendant. She is wearing a dress with ribbon work around a buttoned central panel on the bodice, as was the fashion in the 1870s and 80s. Her neck is adorned with a locket, and she is wearing what appears to be a glass or crystal brooch pinned to a tall, lace trimmed collar, and matching glass or crystal earrings.
During their time in Tonga, the newlywed couple had five children before moving to Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand, in 1890 to set up the G. Kronfeld trading company, later Pacific Trading Company Limited. The import-export business transported fruit, copra and cargo between Aotearoa New Zealand and Sāmoa. Louisa and Gustav became naturalised Aotearoa New Zealand citizens and proceeded to have another five children. They built their residence Olī Ula, which loosely translates as a lei made of red flowers from the ‘oli tree, on Eden Crescent, among many other merchant families. Their home was a landing place for Pacific travellers, relatives and family friends, such as Queen Salote of Tonga who were visiting or even settling in Aotearoa New Zealand. The Kronfeld’s were one of the first Pacific families to immigrate to Aotearoa New Zealand and were well-known for their hospitality. Hence, Olī Ula was decorated with measina Sāmoa, often given as mea’alofa by visitors for the Kronfeld’s generosity. These would later evolve into a collection of gifted and gathered objects from across the Pacific and included, for instance, a tanoa fai ‘ava (wooden ‘ava bowl) from Louisa’s cousin Mata’afa Iosefo, who was crowned paramount chief of Sāmoa in 1898.
When the First World War broke out, more than 60 German detainees were transported to Aotearoa New Zealand from Sāmoa. Motuihe Island in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland harbour and Matiu Island in Te Whanganui a Tara Wellington were the designated destinations for those imprisoned. Gustav Kronfeld would join those interned on Motuihe Island in 1916 until after the war ended in 1918. While Gustav passed away in 1924, Louisa continued to hold the fort at Oli Ula and upheld it as a home for those passing through. Today, the Kronfeld family remains a prominent name in both Sāmoa and Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, with many descendants tracing their ‘gafa (lineage) back to Louisa and Gustav. Their legacy, marked by their hospitality, continues to be fondly remembered.
In 1939, Louisa donated the Kronfeld collection of around 270 artefacts to Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand, significantly contributing to the museum’s Pacific Cultures and Taonga Māori collections.
Author: Charlotte Klinge, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
During their time in Tonga, the newlywed couple had five children before moving to Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand, in 1890 to set up the G. Kronfeld trading company, later Pacific Trading Company Limited. The import-export business transported fruit, copra and cargo between Aotearoa New Zealand and Sāmoa. Louisa and Gustav became naturalised Aotearoa New Zealand citizens and proceeded to have another five children. They built their residence Olī Ula, which loosely translates as a lei made of red flowers from the ‘oli tree, on Eden Crescent, among many other merchant families. Their home was a landing place for Pacific travellers, relatives and family friends, such as Queen Salote of Tonga who were visiting or even settling in Aotearoa New Zealand. The Kronfeld’s were one of the first Pacific families to immigrate to Aotearoa New Zealand and were well-known for their hospitality. Hence, Olī Ula was decorated with measina Sāmoa, often given as mea’alofa by visitors for the Kronfeld’s generosity. These would later evolve into a collection of gifted and gathered objects from across the Pacific and included, for instance, a tanoa fai ‘ava (wooden ‘ava bowl) from Louisa’s cousin Mata’afa Iosefo, who was crowned paramount chief of Sāmoa in 1898.
When the First World War broke out, more than 60 German detainees were transported to Aotearoa New Zealand from Sāmoa. Motuihe Island in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland harbour and Matiu Island in Te Whanganui a Tara Wellington were the designated destinations for those imprisoned. Gustav Kronfeld would join those interned on Motuihe Island in 1916 until after the war ended in 1918. While Gustav passed away in 1924, Louisa continued to hold the fort at Oli Ula and upheld it as a home for those passing through. Today, the Kronfeld family remains a prominent name in both Sāmoa and Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, with many descendants tracing their ‘gafa (lineage) back to Louisa and Gustav. Their legacy, marked by their hospitality, continues to be fondly remembered.
In 1939, Louisa donated the Kronfeld collection of around 270 artefacts to Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand, significantly contributing to the museum’s Pacific Cultures and Taonga Māori collections.
Author: Charlotte Klinge, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Object information
References
- Christine Liava’a: Strangers in the Sāmoan Islands: foreigners mentioned in the cyclopedia of Sāmoa - 1907. New Zealand Society of Genealogists. 2002.