Home»All Photographs»Samoa 2014»The Robert Louis Stevenson Museum, Samoa

Vailima, Apia, Samoa. http://rlsmuseum.org/

Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894) was a prodigious author, adventurer, and son of a lighthouse engineer. He lived his last few years of his life in tropical Samoa with his family, on account of his poor health. Whilst in Samoa, he was an ardent advocate for the indigenous people of Samoa, who named him Tusitala, Teller of Tales.

These photos show his restored house, Vailima, now a beautiful and inspiring museum. The house and estate was restored by the R.L.S. Museum/Preservation Foundation, under the chairmanship of its principal benefactor, Tilafaiga Rex Maughan. Maughan had been a LDS missionary to Samoa in the 1950s and had developed productive relations with the country since his first posting.

Until visiting the RLS Museum, I had not appreciated how significantly the author of "Treasure Island" had been a part of my life through his writing and poems, adapted, modified, and used as a basis of inspiration for songs, television, and film productions.

See also http://stevensonmuseum.org/robert-louis-stevenson/the-life/