| Published NZ Listener,August 13, 2011 | Issue 3718
The first contacts between European navigators and Pacific islanders were often marked by suspicion and animosity. The islanders were usually under threat from raiders from neighbouring islands or rival tribes. The Europeans, facing threats and hostility, were equally on the defensive. Clashes were common, and a mixture of tact and firmness was required in situations where the difference in languages made communication almost impossible.
Anyone who gave the impression of being a person of high status and having a gift for interpreting gestures and language was a real blessing to the voyagers.
Samuel Wallis, whose Dolphin was the first English ship to reach Tahiti, was fortunate to come upon Tupaia, who played a major role in placating the Tahitians, so much so that the next European visitor, Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, was made so welcome he tended to describe the island as a South Seas paradise. And James Cook, who followed in the Endeavour, was able to establish an observatory for his scientists and carry out a detailed survey of the island in safety.
When Cook left, he took Tupaia with him. This was not the first instance of a Polynesian travelling as a guest to visit Europe. Bougainville had taken Ahu-toru, who delighted the Parisians and became a favourite of the courtiers at Versailles. Tupaia, however, did not reach England. Weakened by scurvy, he died at Batavia, in what was then the Dutch East Indies.
He had proved an invaluable asset as the Endeavour sailed from Tahiti to New Zealand and on to Australia, but Cook undervalued him. It was Sir Joseph Banks, the noted botanist, who became his friend and admirer. He had a high regard for Tupaia’s knowledge of astronomy and navigation, and appreciated his interest of botany. But Tupaia’s role in establishing contact with the Maori, thanks in part to the similarities between the Tahitian and Maori languages and social customs, was of major importance in avoiding bloody clashes. When it came to Australia, the language barrier was insurmountable, but even there Tuapaia’s noble bearing and fearless but peaceable approach enabled him to make some contact and probably ease the aborigines’ concerns.
Tupaia deserved a full biography, and thanks to Joan Druett’s meticulous research, he now has one, comprehensive, highly readable and attractively produced. Plentiful illustrations are perfectly presented, and reveal Tupaia’s astonishing ability as a sketch artist, using drawing material that had been totally unknown to him.
Read the full review at The Listener.
TUPAIA: THE REMARKABLE STORY OF CAPTAIN COOK’S POLYNESIAN NAVIGATOR, by Joan Druett (Random House, $55).
John Dunmore is a Pacific historian,specialising in early French navigators.
Anyone who gave the impression of being a person of high status and having a gift for interpreting gestures and language was a real blessing to the voyagers.
Samuel Wallis, whose Dolphin was the first English ship to reach Tahiti, was fortunate to come upon Tupaia, who played a major role in placating the Tahitians, so much so that the next European visitor, Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, was made so welcome he tended to describe the island as a South Seas paradise. And James Cook, who followed in the Endeavour, was able to establish an observatory for his scientists and carry out a detailed survey of the island in safety.
When Cook left, he took Tupaia with him. This was not the first instance of a Polynesian travelling as a guest to visit Europe. Bougainville had taken Ahu-toru, who delighted the Parisians and became a favourite of the courtiers at Versailles. Tupaia, however, did not reach England. Weakened by scurvy, he died at Batavia, in what was then the Dutch East Indies.
He had proved an invaluable asset as the Endeavour sailed from Tahiti to New Zealand and on to Australia, but Cook undervalued him. It was Sir Joseph Banks, the noted botanist, who became his friend and admirer. He had a high regard for Tupaia’s knowledge of astronomy and navigation, and appreciated his interest of botany. But Tupaia’s role in establishing contact with the Maori, thanks in part to the similarities between the Tahitian and Maori languages and social customs, was of major importance in avoiding bloody clashes. When it came to Australia, the language barrier was insurmountable, but even there Tuapaia’s noble bearing and fearless but peaceable approach enabled him to make some contact and probably ease the aborigines’ concerns.
Tupaia deserved a full biography, and thanks to Joan Druett’s meticulous research, he now has one, comprehensive, highly readable and attractively produced. Plentiful illustrations are perfectly presented, and reveal Tupaia’s astonishing ability as a sketch artist, using drawing material that had been totally unknown to him.
Read the full review at The Listener.
TUPAIA: THE REMARKABLE STORY OF CAPTAIN COOK’S POLYNESIAN NAVIGATOR, by Joan Druett (Random House, $55).
John Dunmore is a Pacific historian,specialising in early French navigators.
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