Tahiti: Self portrait of Tupaia, Captain Cook's Polynesian navigator, bartering a lobster (c. 1769).

Tupaia, a native of Raieatea, fled to Tahiti to escape attacking forces from Bora Bora island. A man of clear intelligence, he acted as intermediary, translator, and explicator of Polynesian society for visiting European vessels. On Cook's arrival in 1769, Tupaia went on board Cook's voyage to New Zealand, Australia, and Java, where Tupaia eventually died after falling ill.

Copyright:

Supplier: CPA Media Co. Ltd.

Credit:

Pictures From History

Theme:

FATAL IMPACT