They Found 750 Lost Photos of Samoa Hidden in a Suitcase

Send us Fan MailWhat stories are hidden inside 100-year-old glass plate photos? In Part 2, we go deep into two extraordinary archival collections — the Solf Collection and the Tetens Collection — that are rewriting what we know about Samoa's colonial era. From German governors and Samoan chiefs to a scientist who fell in love with the islands, these 750+ digitized images bring our ancestors back to life.We explore how Otto Tetens' photos survived WWII in a suitcase, a bush expedition to rediscover Mataafa Iosefo's lost house, the Samoan Parliament that vanished in 1905, and the forgotten tradition of liming hair. This is photographic history at its most powerful. 🎙️🕐 TIMESTAMPS00:00 — Intro: The Solf Collection & Dr. Hilke Totoro01:00 — Wilhelm Solf at Vailima & his Samoan household03:00 — German Admiral Von Köper & his Samoan love story05:00 — Afamasaga Moa: Samoa's key colonial-era administrator06:00 — Setting the record straight on Mataafa Iosefo08:00 — Kaiser's birthday gathering & Beach Road, Apia10:00 — How glass plate photography worked12:00 — Introducing the Tetens Collection: 750 rare images14:00 — How Dorothea saved the photos during WWII17:00 — Tetens, the Samoan Parliament & Mulinuu chiefs20:00 — The lost tradition: why Samoans limed their hair21:00 — The only photo of the German Samoan Parliament (1902)23:00 — Lauaki & the orators of parliament25:00 — The demolished Malua Jubilee Hall26:00 — Mataafa Iosefo's house on Mauga Fulau27:00 — Bush expedition: rediscovering the lost foundations30:00 — What drew Tony into Samoan photographic history32:00 — Photographic history vs. mainstream academia📲 FOLLOW US▶ YouTube: @PulseofPolynesia📘 Facebook: Pulse of Polynesia🎵 TikTok: @pulseofpolynesia📸 Instagram: @pulseofpolynesia☕ SUPPORT THE SHOW💚 Cash App: $pulseofpolynesia💜 Venmo: @pulseofpolynesiaYour support helps us keep preserving and sharing Pacific history — thank you! 🙏#PulseOfPolynesia #SamoanHistory #Polynesia #Samoa #PacificHistory #SolfCollection #TetensCollection #SamoanCulture #MataafaIosefo #Lauaki #ColonialHistory #GermanSamoa #Apia #PhotoHistory #GlassPlate #PolynesianPride #PacificIslands #IslandHistory #SamoanPride #Faasamoa #MulinuuPeninsula #HistoricalPhotos #LostHistory #AncestralPhotos #CulturalHeritage #OceaniaHistory #PacificCulture #PolynesianHistory #TrueHistory #HiddenHistorySupport the show