The Death of Captain James Cook (Zoffany) The Death of Captain James Cook (Zoffany) The Death of Captain James Cook, 14 February 1779 is a painting by Johann Zoffany. The painting records the loss of the British explorer Captain James Cook. The painting was completed in 1794 some years after the death of Cook in 1779. Other paintings of the death of Cook were painted earlier. The Mahiole (Feathered Helmet) that was included in the painting of Cook's death by Zoffany is said to be the helmet given to Cook when he first landed in Hawaii. The painting is unfinished. Zoffany is thought to have based the
James Wilfred Cook a biology teacher. James Wilfred Cook Sir James Wilfred Cook FRS FRSE DSc LLD (1900–1975) was an English chemist, best known for his research of organic chemistry of carcinogenic compounds. Friends knew him simply as Jim Cook. He was born in South Kensington in London on 10 December 1900, the son of Charles William Cook, a coachman, and his wife, Frances Wall. Using a London County Council scholarship he attended Sloane School in Chelsea, London. Cook studied Chemistry at University College, London under Frederick G. Donnan and Norman Collie. In 1920 he began lecturing at the Sir John Cass Technical