We present seeing-limited and adaptive optics (AO) images of the z = 1.786 radio galaxy 3C294 in the H and K infrared bands obtained at Keck Observatory. The infrared emission of 3C294 is dominated by two distinct components separated by ~1 (9 kpc). The eastern knot contains an unresolved core that contributes ~4% of the K-band light; we identify this core with the active nucleus. The western component is about 2.5 times brighter. The most plausible interpretation of the near-infrared morphology is an ongoing merger event, with the active nucleus located in the less massive of the two galaxies.
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