CAPTAIN JAMES COOK RELIC
Could Human Hair & Scalp Tissue, pinned within an album of tapa cloth samples, be a relic of Cook's third Pacific Ocean voyage - that culminated in his death at Hawaii in 1779 ?
Ethnographer & Tribal Art expert Arthur Beau Palmer is combing the clues to unlock the mystery.
Ethnographer & Tribal Art expert Arthur Beau Palmer is combing the clues to unlock the mystery.
"I first viewed this lock of scalp & red hair at the Mitchell Library Sydney in November 2008 while finalising research into a newly discovered Cook embroidered waistcoat. Attached to the leaf of a Cook Exploration tapa sample album, it stood out as a startling anomaly of unknown import which immediately begs the question as to its potential association with Cook. I took detailed macro photographs of this specimen at the time. Subsequently, in 2011, I wrote & sent a detailed rationale & included photos to the Mitchell in an attempt to encourage urgent research & examination of this hair to determine significance & possible association with Cook. Some eight years on, the time has arrived to place this in the public arena to promotes further scholarship." Arthur Palmer

Abstract
The Mitchell Library, in Sydney, holds 'A Collection of specimens of bark cloth collected in the different voyages of Capt. Cook to the South Sea'. It is an album of Tapa cloth samples collected during Cook's voyages in the Pacific between 1769 and 1779 when he was killed at Hawaii.
The album contains 48 tapa examples & six other unrelated specimens - two of twine & cord, one of bird feathers.
Two of native hair & one of a lock of red hair, possibly attached to scalp tissue, which appears to be human but not of Polynesian nor Melanesian origin.
The irresistible inference is that this may have a connection to the fate of a European from the early Pacific exploration era.
Some background on this Tapa album, connection to voyages of Cook & Bligh & other matters are discussed.
Avenues of inquiry & analysis of the specimen are suggested.
The Mitchell Library, in Sydney, holds 'A Collection of specimens of bark cloth collected in the different voyages of Capt. Cook to the South Sea'. It is an album of Tapa cloth samples collected during Cook's voyages in the Pacific between 1769 and 1779 when he was killed at Hawaii.
The album contains 48 tapa examples & six other unrelated specimens - two of twine & cord, one of bird feathers.
Two of native hair & one of a lock of red hair, possibly attached to scalp tissue, which appears to be human but not of Polynesian nor Melanesian origin.
The irresistible inference is that this may have a connection to the fate of a European from the early Pacific exploration era.
Some background on this Tapa album, connection to voyages of Cook & Bligh & other matters are discussed.
Avenues of inquiry & analysis of the specimen are suggested.

Description of Red Hair Specimen
Colour: High red corona due flash in natural light presents as dull ginger.
Origin: It is not known whether it is Animal or Human - European hair?
Appearance: Ginger red with gray roots - Scalp attached.
Length: Hair is approx. 10cm.
No caption, notation nor pagination ?
All other samples notated except page 6.
Why included in Cook Tapa book between other samples?
Do Other Tapa books have similar taxidermy sample examples? Not according to Donald Kerr’s Census of Alexander Shaw’s Catalogue of Different Specimens of Cloth Collected in the Three Voyages of Captain Cook to the Southern Hemisphere, 1787
All other pages are paginated in pencil.
All other samples are mounted under label plate.
Questions & Lines of Enquiry.
Is the specimen human hair?
If human is it European?
Is hair attached to scalp tissue. (Indicative of post death harvest?).
Can DNA be matched with Cook hair lock sample?
Is the Cook Hair lock (c1779) Call number SAFE/DR 2., an immediately post death relic collected on The Resolution - itself of secure provenance?
Test health (scalp tissue sample + hair analysis).
Red/ginger appearance of hair – natural or dye/stain (note grey root section).
Red is the sacred colour of the Hawaiians.
Other possibilities – if human & European. See Skinner the red headed Bounty barber below.
Is the Cook hair lock (Call number SAFE/DR 2) indicative that other examples of hair recovered from Cook's body were distributed on The Resolution?
Colour: High red corona due flash in natural light presents as dull ginger.
Origin: It is not known whether it is Animal or Human - European hair?
Appearance: Ginger red with gray roots - Scalp attached.
Length: Hair is approx. 10cm.
No caption, notation nor pagination ?
All other samples notated except page 6.
Why included in Cook Tapa book between other samples?
Do Other Tapa books have similar taxidermy sample examples? Not according to Donald Kerr’s Census of Alexander Shaw’s Catalogue of Different Specimens of Cloth Collected in the Three Voyages of Captain Cook to the Southern Hemisphere, 1787
All other pages are paginated in pencil.
All other samples are mounted under label plate.
Questions & Lines of Enquiry.
Is the specimen human hair?
If human is it European?
Is hair attached to scalp tissue. (Indicative of post death harvest?).
Can DNA be matched with Cook hair lock sample?
Is the Cook Hair lock (c1779) Call number SAFE/DR 2., an immediately post death relic collected on The Resolution - itself of secure provenance?
Test health (scalp tissue sample + hair analysis).
Red/ginger appearance of hair – natural or dye/stain (note grey root section).
Red is the sacred colour of the Hawaiians.
Other possibilities – if human & European. See Skinner the red headed Bounty barber below.
Is the Cook hair lock (Call number SAFE/DR 2) indicative that other examples of hair recovered from Cook's body were distributed on The Resolution?
Cook Voyage Tapa Specimen Album - Mitchell Library

'A Collection of specimens of bark cloth as collected in the different voyages of Capt. Cook to the South Sea'
Top right notation Black Friars (?) - area SE City of London - Black Trust, the Sir Robert Black Trust perhaps.
Notation (50) there are 48 mounted Tapa samples + 6 of twine, feather & hair.
Notation - Also feathers of small birds, hair of the natives, twine, plaits of human hair etc.
Call Number C523 (Safe 1 / 240)
Physical Description 1 vol. (18.5cm x 15cm) in box - 0.05 Meters
Textual Records - (manuscript)
Source Acquired by the Library from Maggs Bros. for David Scott Mitchell in 1902. Bequeathed by D.S. Mitchell, 1907.
Listed in M.K. Beddie, Bibliography of Captain James Cook, item no. 3643
Exhibited in 'Cook's Sites' at the Museum of Sydney in 2005, but incorrectly described as 'A Catalogue of the different specimens of cloth collected in the three voyages of Captain Cook to the southern hemisphere', Alexander Shaw, London, 1787
David Scott Mitchell Collection.
Digital order no. Album ID : 823465
http://www.acmssearch.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/itemDetailPaged.cgi?itemID=446449
Top right notation Black Friars (?) - area SE City of London - Black Trust, the Sir Robert Black Trust perhaps.
Notation (50) there are 48 mounted Tapa samples + 6 of twine, feather & hair.
Notation - Also feathers of small birds, hair of the natives, twine, plaits of human hair etc.
Call Number C523 (Safe 1 / 240)
Physical Description 1 vol. (18.5cm x 15cm) in box - 0.05 Meters
Textual Records - (manuscript)
Source Acquired by the Library from Maggs Bros. for David Scott Mitchell in 1902. Bequeathed by D.S. Mitchell, 1907.
Listed in M.K. Beddie, Bibliography of Captain James Cook, item no. 3643
Exhibited in 'Cook's Sites' at the Museum of Sydney in 2005, but incorrectly described as 'A Catalogue of the different specimens of cloth collected in the three voyages of Captain Cook to the southern hemisphere', Alexander Shaw, London, 1787
David Scott Mitchell Collection.
Digital order no. Album ID : 823465
http://www.acmssearch.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/itemDetailPaged.cgi?itemID=446449
Similar Cook Voyage Collected Tapa Sample Albums
63 known copies
Forbes has described Shaw’s Tapa Cloth book as ‘one of the great curiosities resulting from Cook’s Third Voyage’, further calling it a ‘very rare book, of which no two copies are alike’.
Travelling in 1769 with Captain Cook, Joseph Banks wrote, “of this thin cloth they have as many different sorts almost as we have of linen; distinguishing it into different fineness and the different materials of which it is made.”[2] Called siapo by the Samoans and Futunans, ngatu by the Tongans and Uveans, ahu by the Tahitians, masi by the Fijians and kapa by the Hawaiians, the craft is widespread and holds deep cultural, religious and ritual history throughout the islands of the Pacific. [4]
Joseph Bank’s (& Bligh) role in provision of samples for & the production of these albums? Did Banks direct these Albums be made?
Census of Alexander Shaw’s Catalogue of the Different Specimens of Cloth Collected in the Three Voyages of Captain Cook to the Southern Hemisphere, 1787
https://ourarchive.otago.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10523/4573/Cook's%20Tapa%20Cloth2015VersionThree.pdf?sequence=8
Donald Kerr Special Collections Librarian University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.
In the ‘first’ edition of this document I included the copy at the University of Cambridge, Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.7 I have now removed it from the Census because it was found to be a manuscript copy, perhaps similar to the Mitchell Library copy (SAFE 1/240/C523; p. 34), which has also not been counted.
PUBLIC AUCTION of TAPA BOOK EXAMPLES.
http://www.paulfrasercollectibles.com/news/books-and-manuscripts/captain-james-cooks-map-to-make-195-500-at-sothebys/16603.page
Paul Fraser Collectibles, Wednesday 5 March 2014
A catalogue featuring samples of the different varieties of tapa cloth collected on the Cook voyages is valued at £70,000-100,000 ($113,995-162,850).
The book was published in a run of around 45 in 1787
Alexander Shaw, whose relationship to the voyage remains unknown, produced around 45 of the exceptionally rare books in 1787.
Tapa cloth is made from bark and produced across the Pacific islands. The samples feature strong variations in colour and pattern.
A comparable example of the book sold for £115,250 ($180,827) at Christie's London in 2010.
We have this lock of hair from Admiral Nelson, another famed British Naval officer.
Samples of genuine tapa cloth in the contemporary books of Alexander Shaw and Anders Sparrman: Joseph Banks?
Travelling in 1769 with Captain Cook, Joseph Banks wrote, “of this thin cloth they have as many different sorts almost as we have of linen; distinguishing it into different fineness and the different materials of which it is made.”[2] Called siapo by the Samoans and Futunans, ngatu by the Tongans and Uveans, ahu by the Tahitians, masi by the Fijians and kapa by the Hawaiians, the craft is widespread and holds deep cultural, religious and ritual history throughout the islands of the Pacific. [4]
Joseph Bank’s (& Bligh) role in provision of samples for & the production of these albums? Did Banks direct these Albums be made?
Census of Alexander Shaw’s Catalogue of the Different Specimens of Cloth Collected in the Three Voyages of Captain Cook to the Southern Hemisphere, 1787
https://ourarchive.otago.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10523/4573/Cook's%20Tapa%20Cloth2015VersionThree.pdf?sequence=8
Donald Kerr Special Collections Librarian University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.
In the ‘first’ edition of this document I included the copy at the University of Cambridge, Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.7 I have now removed it from the Census because it was found to be a manuscript copy, perhaps similar to the Mitchell Library copy (SAFE 1/240/C523; p. 34), which has also not been counted.
PUBLIC AUCTION of TAPA BOOK EXAMPLES.
http://www.paulfrasercollectibles.com/news/books-and-manuscripts/captain-james-cooks-map-to-make-195-500-at-sothebys/16603.page
Paul Fraser Collectibles, Wednesday 5 March 2014
A catalogue featuring samples of the different varieties of tapa cloth collected on the Cook voyages is valued at £70,000-100,000 ($113,995-162,850).
The book was published in a run of around 45 in 1787
Alexander Shaw, whose relationship to the voyage remains unknown, produced around 45 of the exceptionally rare books in 1787.
Tapa cloth is made from bark and produced across the Pacific islands. The samples feature strong variations in colour and pattern.
A comparable example of the book sold for £115,250 ($180,827) at Christie's London in 2010.
We have this lock of hair from Admiral Nelson, another famed British Naval officer.
Samples of genuine tapa cloth in the contemporary books of Alexander Shaw and Anders Sparrman: Joseph Banks?

http://www.pacificarts.org/node/1030
A map of the Southern and Pacific Oceans produced by Captain James Cook (1728-1779) and Joseph Banks is to lead an auction at Sotheby's in London.
The lot, valued at £80,000-120,000 ($130,280-195,420), will headline the Exploration & Discovery 1576-1939: The Library of Franklin Brooke-Hitching Part I, A-C auction March 27.
One of only three known copies, two of which are held in institutions, the map is the earliest to depict the entire recently discovered continent of Australia and New Zealand.
Scientist Sir Joseph Banks, who accompanied Cook on the first voyage, commissioned it in preparation for the second, in 1772.
Ultimately, Banks was denied permission to sail following a quarrel with the admiralty and the majority of the 100 or so examples of the map were discarded - making them exceptionally rare today.
A map of the Southern and Pacific Oceans produced by Captain James Cook (1728-1779) and Joseph Banks is to lead an auction at Sotheby's in London.
The lot, valued at £80,000-120,000 ($130,280-195,420), will headline the Exploration & Discovery 1576-1939: The Library of Franklin Brooke-Hitching Part I, A-C auction March 27.
One of only three known copies, two of which are held in institutions, the map is the earliest to depict the entire recently discovered continent of Australia and New Zealand.
Scientist Sir Joseph Banks, who accompanied Cook on the first voyage, commissioned it in preparation for the second, in 1772.
Ultimately, Banks was denied permission to sail following a quarrel with the admiralty and the majority of the 100 or so examples of the map were discarded - making them exceptionally rare today.
Captain James Cook - Physical Description
Dr Samwell, surgeon in the Discovery, who accompanied Cook on the voyages of 1775–76, says:
“His person was above six feet high, and though a good looking man, he was plain both in address and appearance. His head was small, his hair, which was dark brown, he wore tied behind. His face was full of expression, his nose exceedingly well shaped, his eyes which were of a brown cast, were quick and piercing: his eyebrows prominent, which gave his countenance altogether an air of austerity.”
“His person was above six feet high, and though a good looking man, he was plain both in address and appearance. His head was small, his hair, which was dark brown, he wore tied behind. His face was full of expression, his nose exceedingly well shaped, his eyes which were of a brown cast, were quick and piercing: his eyebrows prominent, which gave his countenance altogether an air of austerity.”
Source: Captain Cook and Hawaii – a narrative by David Samwell (originally published 1786, reprinted 1957), pp. 32–33.
Sir Walter Besant, a biographer of Cook; writes:
“He was, to begin with, over six feet high, thin and spare; his head was small; his forehead was broad; his hair was of a dark brown, rolled back and tied in the fashion of his time; his nose was long and straight; his nostrils clear and finely cut; his cheek bones were high, a feature which illustrated his Scotch descent; his eyes were brown and small, but well set, quick and piercing; his eyebrows were large and bushy, his chin was round and full; his mouth firmly set; his face long. It was an austere face, but striking ….” Captain Cook, Besant, Walter (1890), p. 33. http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/1966/cook-james/page-2
Sir Walter Besant, a biographer of Cook; writes:
“He was, to begin with, over six feet high, thin and spare; his head was small; his forehead was broad; his hair was of a dark brown, rolled back and tied in the fashion of his time; his nose was long and straight; his nostrils clear and finely cut; his cheek bones were high, a feature which illustrated his Scotch descent; his eyes were brown and small, but well set, quick and piercing; his eyebrows were large and bushy, his chin was round and full; his mouth firmly set; his face long. It was an austere face, but striking ….” Captain Cook, Besant, Walter (1890), p. 33. http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/1966/cook-james/page-2
Captain James Cook's Death & Remains
http://www.coffeetimes.com/cook.htm
The following evening, a truce was declared. Some of the remains of Captain Cook were returned to the British, which Clerke deposited in a weighted box and sank in Kealakekua Bay. Kalaniopu'u is said to have kept Cook's long bones and jaw, and the young warrior Kamehameha was given the hair.
http://www.captaincooksociety.com/home/detail/the-death-of-captain-cook-a-hero-made-and-unmade-williams-glyn-2008
"About 8 o'clock, it being very dark, a canoe was heard paddling towards the ship. There were two [Hawaiian] persons in the canoe, and when they came on board they threw themselves at our feet, and appeared exceedingly frightened. After lamenting with abundance of tears and loss of ‘Orono’ – as the natives called Captain Cook – one of them told us that he had brought us a part of the body.
He then presented to us a small bundle wrapped up in cloth, which he had brought under his arm. It is impossible to describe the horror which seized us on finding it a piece of human flesh about 9 or 10 pounds' weight. This, he said, was all that remained of the body of ‘Orono’; the rest was cut to pieces, and burnt; but the head and all the bones, except what belonged to the trunk, were in the possession of Terreeoboo. What we were looking at had been allotted to Kaoo, the chief of the priests, to be made use of in some religious ceremony. He said he had brought it as a proof on his innocence, and his attachment to us."
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18th: "About eight o'Clock at night a man brought off some roasted bread fruit on a swimming board to the Discovery, which was bought of him; soon after two or three Canoes came loaded with the same Article, and one with Girls which were admitted to the Ship, tho' we are at open war with their Countrymen. We enquired of some of these Indians what they had done with Captain Cook's body and with those of the rest of our people; they told us that the body of Captain Cook was divided in the following manner. His head fell to the share of a Chief called Ke-koo-opeoo; his Hair to Kamehameha; his Legs, Thighs, Arms & under Jaw to Kariopoo, and the body was burnt. They told us that the King and his Attendants lived at present in some Holes in the rocks behind the Town of Kavaroa".
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20th: "Between ten & eleven o'Clock we saw a great Number of people coming down the hills in a kind of procession, every one of them carrying a Sugar Cane or two on his Shoulders & about as many breadfruit, Taroo root, or Plantains in his Hand. Two Drummers who accompanyed them sat down on the Beach by a white Flag & beat their Drums, while the Indians came one by one, laid down their Sugar Cane &c. and then retired; another party came along the Beach, in the same order, & laid down their Presents or peace offerings upon the others & then withdrew. Another white Flag with one Man sitting by it was flying about midway on the Beach. In a short time we saw Eeapo in his feathered Cloak standing on a rock waving to us for a boat to come on shore, on which Captain Clerke went to him in the Pinnace attended by the 1st Lieut. in the large Cutter. They did not land, for Eeapo attended by Taweno-ora came into the Pinnace, and a large bundle was handed in covered with a black feathered Cloak, in which was contained the remains of Captain Cook decently wrapped up in a large quantity of fine new Cloth. Eeapo did not stay long on board either Ship, but soon returned on shore with the presents that were made to him, a fine new Cloak was given to him on board the Discovery made of red Bays with a border of green. In the Afternoon the Bundle was opened on board the Resolution in the Cabbin, we found in it the following bones with some flesh upon them which had the marks of fire. The Thighs & Legs joined together but not the feet, both Arms with the Hands seperated from them, the Skull with all the bones that form the face wanting with the Scalp separated from it, which was also in the bundle with the hair on it cut short, both Hands whole with the Skin of the fore Arms joined to them, the hands had not been in the fire, but were salted, several Gashes being cut in them to take the Salt in. Tho we had no doubt concerning the Identity of any of the parts contained in the bundle, every one must be perfectly satisfied as to that of the hands, for we all knew the right by a large Scar on it separating for about an inch the Thumb from the fore-finger. The Ears adhered to the Scalp, which had a cut in it about an inch long, probably made by the first blow he received with the Club, but the Skull was not fractured so that it is likely that the Stroke was not mortal. Such was the Condition in which those, who looked upon Captain Cook as their father & whose great Qualities they venerated almost to adoration, were doomed to behold his Remains; what their feelings were upon the Occasion is not to be described".
http://ivan-ghandhi.livejournal.com/617746.html
Cook on the beach, the shark God Lono walking on land, and Bligh always on the deck of his floating island, a man content to walk on the waters of the world. Bligh’s beach was his deck and he very seldom went ashore. Cook needed to touch his discoveries to make them real. Bligh simply mapped his to make them “discovered”. It’s as if Bligh acted out the old Irish joke – tell me where I’ll die and I’ll make bloody sure to never go within 15 miles of the accursed place.
Richard Hough (1972: 46-47) distills from the account of Lt. Philips, the only recorded participant observer, on shore and survivor of Cook’s last minutes “A native broke from the threatening circle about Cook and Phillips, raising in one hand his pahhooa (a long spike like a spear) and in the other hand a stone, shouting threats and abuse. Cook replied at first by a gesture ordering him to retreat, and when this failed by firing the barrel of his musket loaded with ball shot. This had none of the deterrent effect Cook expected. It was quite the reverse. The shot failed to penetrate the native’s protective mat, which he flaunted first mockingly at Cook and then triumphantly at his own people.
Hawaiian mats of woven armour are described in some detail by Phillips in Henry Theodore Cheever’s book “Life in the Sandwich Islands; or the Heart of the Pacific, as it was and is” (1841:26). “Large thick mats they were observed to wear, which they constantly kept wet, and, further more, the Indian that Cook fired at with a blank discovered no fear, when he found his mat unburnt, saying in his language, when he showed it to the bystanders, that no fire had touched it.”
What is demonstrably false in this report is reference to Cook firing a blank. Cook had loaded that morning with ball specifically to kill & he fired ball to kill (Hough 1972:44).It is part of the wider historical cover up of Cook’s increasing vengeful brutality that characterized him at his worst on this final voyage (Alexander 2004:128).It is intended not to report history but to maintain the myth of Cook - the humanitarian hero, discoverer extraordinaire.
The following evening, a truce was declared. Some of the remains of Captain Cook were returned to the British, which Clerke deposited in a weighted box and sank in Kealakekua Bay. Kalaniopu'u is said to have kept Cook's long bones and jaw, and the young warrior Kamehameha was given the hair.
http://www.captaincooksociety.com/home/detail/the-death-of-captain-cook-a-hero-made-and-unmade-williams-glyn-2008
"About 8 o'clock, it being very dark, a canoe was heard paddling towards the ship. There were two [Hawaiian] persons in the canoe, and when they came on board they threw themselves at our feet, and appeared exceedingly frightened. After lamenting with abundance of tears and loss of ‘Orono’ – as the natives called Captain Cook – one of them told us that he had brought us a part of the body.
He then presented to us a small bundle wrapped up in cloth, which he had brought under his arm. It is impossible to describe the horror which seized us on finding it a piece of human flesh about 9 or 10 pounds' weight. This, he said, was all that remained of the body of ‘Orono’; the rest was cut to pieces, and burnt; but the head and all the bones, except what belonged to the trunk, were in the possession of Terreeoboo. What we were looking at had been allotted to Kaoo, the chief of the priests, to be made use of in some religious ceremony. He said he had brought it as a proof on his innocence, and his attachment to us."
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18th: "About eight o'Clock at night a man brought off some roasted bread fruit on a swimming board to the Discovery, which was bought of him; soon after two or three Canoes came loaded with the same Article, and one with Girls which were admitted to the Ship, tho' we are at open war with their Countrymen. We enquired of some of these Indians what they had done with Captain Cook's body and with those of the rest of our people; they told us that the body of Captain Cook was divided in the following manner. His head fell to the share of a Chief called Ke-koo-opeoo; his Hair to Kamehameha; his Legs, Thighs, Arms & under Jaw to Kariopoo, and the body was burnt. They told us that the King and his Attendants lived at present in some Holes in the rocks behind the Town of Kavaroa".
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20th: "Between ten & eleven o'Clock we saw a great Number of people coming down the hills in a kind of procession, every one of them carrying a Sugar Cane or two on his Shoulders & about as many breadfruit, Taroo root, or Plantains in his Hand. Two Drummers who accompanyed them sat down on the Beach by a white Flag & beat their Drums, while the Indians came one by one, laid down their Sugar Cane &c. and then retired; another party came along the Beach, in the same order, & laid down their Presents or peace offerings upon the others & then withdrew. Another white Flag with one Man sitting by it was flying about midway on the Beach. In a short time we saw Eeapo in his feathered Cloak standing on a rock waving to us for a boat to come on shore, on which Captain Clerke went to him in the Pinnace attended by the 1st Lieut. in the large Cutter. They did not land, for Eeapo attended by Taweno-ora came into the Pinnace, and a large bundle was handed in covered with a black feathered Cloak, in which was contained the remains of Captain Cook decently wrapped up in a large quantity of fine new Cloth. Eeapo did not stay long on board either Ship, but soon returned on shore with the presents that were made to him, a fine new Cloak was given to him on board the Discovery made of red Bays with a border of green. In the Afternoon the Bundle was opened on board the Resolution in the Cabbin, we found in it the following bones with some flesh upon them which had the marks of fire. The Thighs & Legs joined together but not the feet, both Arms with the Hands seperated from them, the Skull with all the bones that form the face wanting with the Scalp separated from it, which was also in the bundle with the hair on it cut short, both Hands whole with the Skin of the fore Arms joined to them, the hands had not been in the fire, but were salted, several Gashes being cut in them to take the Salt in. Tho we had no doubt concerning the Identity of any of the parts contained in the bundle, every one must be perfectly satisfied as to that of the hands, for we all knew the right by a large Scar on it separating for about an inch the Thumb from the fore-finger. The Ears adhered to the Scalp, which had a cut in it about an inch long, probably made by the first blow he received with the Club, but the Skull was not fractured so that it is likely that the Stroke was not mortal. Such was the Condition in which those, who looked upon Captain Cook as their father & whose great Qualities they venerated almost to adoration, were doomed to behold his Remains; what their feelings were upon the Occasion is not to be described".
http://ivan-ghandhi.livejournal.com/617746.html
Cook on the beach, the shark God Lono walking on land, and Bligh always on the deck of his floating island, a man content to walk on the waters of the world. Bligh’s beach was his deck and he very seldom went ashore. Cook needed to touch his discoveries to make them real. Bligh simply mapped his to make them “discovered”. It’s as if Bligh acted out the old Irish joke – tell me where I’ll die and I’ll make bloody sure to never go within 15 miles of the accursed place.
Richard Hough (1972: 46-47) distills from the account of Lt. Philips, the only recorded participant observer, on shore and survivor of Cook’s last minutes “A native broke from the threatening circle about Cook and Phillips, raising in one hand his pahhooa (a long spike like a spear) and in the other hand a stone, shouting threats and abuse. Cook replied at first by a gesture ordering him to retreat, and when this failed by firing the barrel of his musket loaded with ball shot. This had none of the deterrent effect Cook expected. It was quite the reverse. The shot failed to penetrate the native’s protective mat, which he flaunted first mockingly at Cook and then triumphantly at his own people.
Hawaiian mats of woven armour are described in some detail by Phillips in Henry Theodore Cheever’s book “Life in the Sandwich Islands; or the Heart of the Pacific, as it was and is” (1841:26). “Large thick mats they were observed to wear, which they constantly kept wet, and, further more, the Indian that Cook fired at with a blank discovered no fear, when he found his mat unburnt, saying in his language, when he showed it to the bystanders, that no fire had touched it.”
What is demonstrably false in this report is reference to Cook firing a blank. Cook had loaded that morning with ball specifically to kill & he fired ball to kill (Hough 1972:44).It is part of the wider historical cover up of Cook’s increasing vengeful brutality that characterized him at his worst on this final voyage (Alexander 2004:128).It is intended not to report history but to maintain the myth of Cook - the humanitarian hero, discoverer extraordinaire.
In 2004 an original seminal painting of Cook’s death by John Cleveley, based on a description from his brother James, carpenter on the Resolution, was brought to light. It depicts what all who witnessed the scene knew to be true. Cook fighting hard for his life, swinging his musket as a club. No sign of a martyr suing for peace and calm as depicted in the reinterpreted published engraved aquatint by Jukes in 1788 (Smith 1992:232). The sanitizing of Cook’s violent relations with Natives in illustrations predates Cook death. Cook himself suppressed images of conflict and other matters such as nudity in his publications (ibed:198). On this third voyage he had expressly forbidden the official artist, Webber, from portraying any violent confrontation with Native people (ibid: 202).
Cook Relics
Dixson Library, State Library of New South Wales
Inside the box, under glass, is a lock of Cook's hair and a rough watercolour sketch, depicting Cook's death. The ditty box sits on a silver stand & is enclosed in a glass box, silver mounted. A sliding compartment in the bottom of the case contains documents ; 9 x 7 cm. (ditty box); 7 x 23 x 15 cm. (glass box)
The box was given by Mrs Cook to a relation, Mr John Carpenter, in 1806, and it then came into the possession of a descendant, Mr Thomas Hart, from whom it was purchased by Sir William Dixson.
“The gentlemen auctioned off Cook’s clothes in the great cabin as the chiefs divided up his bones in the Temple of Ku. They all – gentlemen and Chiefs - had some sense of how great men find resurrection in their relics. Even the lower deck had their eyes on the value of souvenirs.
All the Hawaiian artifacts they had collected went up in value, and you can find them now in the museums of the world – spears, axes, feather cloaks and beads – marked with a note that they had belonged to men who had belonged to Cook and had seen him die” (Dening 1992:171).
The box was given by Mrs Cook to a relation, Mr John Carpenter, in 1806, and it then came into the possession of a descendant, Mr Thomas Hart, from whom it was purchased by Sir William Dixson.
“The gentlemen auctioned off Cook’s clothes in the great cabin as the chiefs divided up his bones in the Temple of Ku. They all – gentlemen and Chiefs - had some sense of how great men find resurrection in their relics. Even the lower deck had their eyes on the value of souvenirs.
All the Hawaiian artifacts they had collected went up in value, and you can find them now in the museums of the world – spears, axes, feather cloaks and beads – marked with a note that they had belonged to men who had belonged to Cook and had seen him die” (Dening 1992:171).
Captain Cook Mementos

Captain James Cook's widow, Elizabeth, cherished mementos of her husband's life, until her own death in 1835. Like so many army or navy widows, Elizabeth also carefully preserved items from her husband's uniform, including his dress sword and shoe buckles. Long after the official period of mourning for her husband's death, Elizabeth Cook continued to wear a cameo-style memorial ring. So long in fact, that she was still wearing it in a portrait painted of her aged in her eighties.
Possibly the memento which evokes the greatest response almost two-and-a half centuries later is the waistcoat made from Tahitian tapa cloth. Cook brought the cloth back from his second voyage and it was embroidered by his wife during the fateful third voyage. When Cook did not return from the voyage, the waistcoat remained unfinished.
An intriguing object is a small, coffin-shaped, carved wooden ditty box with a lid which swivels to reveal a tiny naïve painting of Cook's death and a lock of his hair. This little relic was carved by sailors on Cook's last ship, HMS Resolution, as a keepsake for his wife.
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/voyages/voya_mementos.html
Possibly the memento which evokes the greatest response almost two-and-a half centuries later is the waistcoat made from Tahitian tapa cloth. Cook brought the cloth back from his second voyage and it was embroidered by his wife during the fateful third voyage. When Cook did not return from the voyage, the waistcoat remained unfinished.
An intriguing object is a small, coffin-shaped, carved wooden ditty box with a lid which swivels to reveal a tiny naïve painting of Cook's death and a lock of his hair. This little relic was carved by sailors on Cook's last ship, HMS Resolution, as a keepsake for his wife.
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/voyages/voya_mementos.html
Purported Cook Relics Examples
Whilst contemporary accounts of the King's visit did not report that he had brought any gifts to England, a relative of the Cook family subsequently claimed to possess an arrow which he alleged had been brought to England by the King. The arrow was unusual in its construction as it comprised a short foreshaft made of bone, said to have come from one of the small leg-bones of Captain Cook.
In 1878 this arrow was in the possession of William Adams, a distant cousin of the late Mrs Cook. To authenticate the provenance of the arrow Adams produced two statements. One had been written in 1828 by Joseph Henry Green, subsequently a President of the Royal College of Surgeons in London. The other statement was from Bishop Staley, late Bishop of Hawaii. The Bishop had queried the origin of the arrow with the King of Hawaii who after making appropriate enquiries indicated that the claimed source of the bone was most likely to be true.
In 1886 the arrow and its supporting statements were exhibited in London at The Colonial and Indian Exhibition. It lay alongside other Cook-related exhibits which relatives of the Cook family had loaned to form part of the display of the Government of New South Wales. The following year the artefacts were acquired by that Australian State, and passed into the collection of its museum. The arrow lies in the anthropology collection of The Australian Museum, Sydney. It is hoped that one day DNA analysis of the bone may indicate whether there is any truth in its legendary association with Captain Cook.
On the other hand there are many museums around the world that contain artifacts claiming similar close connections with Captain Cook. The legend associated with the arrow has been proved to be false, but there are other items that need equally close scrutiny to determine whether or not they are genuine. I am grateful to The Australian Museum for having the courage to allow their arrow to be subjected to the technology of the 21st century. On this occasion technology has "won", but I am sure that one of these days we are all in for a big surprise when modern technology proves one of the Cook legends to be true – and it will happen, one day.http://www.captaincooksociety.com/home/detail/king-kamehameha-s-arrow-how-a-mystery-was-solved
In 1878 this arrow was in the possession of William Adams, a distant cousin of the late Mrs Cook. To authenticate the provenance of the arrow Adams produced two statements. One had been written in 1828 by Joseph Henry Green, subsequently a President of the Royal College of Surgeons in London. The other statement was from Bishop Staley, late Bishop of Hawaii. The Bishop had queried the origin of the arrow with the King of Hawaii who after making appropriate enquiries indicated that the claimed source of the bone was most likely to be true.
In 1886 the arrow and its supporting statements were exhibited in London at The Colonial and Indian Exhibition. It lay alongside other Cook-related exhibits which relatives of the Cook family had loaned to form part of the display of the Government of New South Wales. The following year the artefacts were acquired by that Australian State, and passed into the collection of its museum. The arrow lies in the anthropology collection of The Australian Museum, Sydney. It is hoped that one day DNA analysis of the bone may indicate whether there is any truth in its legendary association with Captain Cook.
On the other hand there are many museums around the world that contain artifacts claiming similar close connections with Captain Cook. The legend associated with the arrow has been proved to be false, but there are other items that need equally close scrutiny to determine whether or not they are genuine. I am grateful to The Australian Museum for having the courage to allow their arrow to be subjected to the technology of the 21st century. On this occasion technology has "won", but I am sure that one of these days we are all in for a big surprise when modern technology proves one of the Cook legends to be true – and it will happen, one day.http://www.captaincooksociety.com/home/detail/king-kamehameha-s-arrow-how-a-mystery-was-solved
Christies London Purported Cook Boomerang
- http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/boomerang-wont-come-back-to-auction/2008/09/25/1222217409375.html
http://arthur-palmer.blogspot.com.au/2008/08/christies-cook-boomerang-artifact-with_31.html
http://www.christies.com/presscenter/pdf/08202008/121442.pdf
http://arthur-palmer.blogspot.com.au/2008/08/christies-cook-boomerang-artifact-with_31.html
http://www.christies.com/presscenter/pdf/08202008/121442.pdf
Images of Capt. Cook's Demise - Real & Imagined

Death of Cook is the name of several paintings depicting the 1779 death of British explorer and European discoverer of the Hawaiian Islands, Captain James Cook at Kealakekua Bay. Most of these paintings seem to go back to an original by John Cleveley the Younger, painted in 1784, although other versions, like that of John Webber, stood model for later copies too. . The much more famous reproductions, like the one at the Honolulu Museum of Art (allegedly based on the Cleveley version), often depicted Cook as a peacemaker trying to stop the fighting between his sailors and the native Hawaiians. However, in 2004, the original Cleveley painting was discovered in a private collection belonging to a family since 1851. Cleveley's brother was a member of Cook's crew, and the painting is said to concur with eyewitness accounts. The original depicted Cook involved in hand-to-hand combat with the native Hawaiians. The discovery of the original painting has not changed the way most historians view Cook's relationship with the Hawaiians, as during his last voyage, Cook was reported by his contemporaries to have become irrationally violent.[2]
The original watercolour painting, together with three others in a series by Cleveley, was put up for auction by Christie's auction house in London in 2004. The lot of four paintings sold for £318,850 (USD 572,655).[3]
The original watercolour painting, together with three others in a series by Cleveley, was put up for auction by Christie's auction house in London in 2004. The lot of four paintings sold for £318,850 (USD 572,655).[3]

Many artists, including the official artist for the voyage, John Webber, recreated the scene in the years following Cook’s death.
Each artist portrayed a different view: Cook the white knight, Cook the peacemaker, Cook the leader of a military offensive.
Webber didn’t witness the death so it seems likely that an engraving made from the drawings of DP Dodd and other witnesses are more likely to represent what really happened.
Many artists, including the official artist for the voyage, John Webber, recreated the scene in the years following Cook’s death. Each artist portrayed a different view: Cook the white knight, Cook the peacemaker, Cook the leader of a military offensive.
Webber didn’t witness the death so it seems likely that an engraving made from the drawings of DP Dodd and other witnesses are more likely to represent what really happened.
Each artist portrayed a different view: Cook the white knight, Cook the peacemaker, Cook the leader of a military offensive.
Webber didn’t witness the death so it seems likely that an engraving made from the drawings of DP Dodd and other witnesses are more likely to represent what really happened.
Many artists, including the official artist for the voyage, John Webber, recreated the scene in the years following Cook’s death. Each artist portrayed a different view: Cook the white knight, Cook the peacemaker, Cook the leader of a military offensive.
Webber didn’t witness the death so it seems likely that an engraving made from the drawings of DP Dodd and other witnesses are more likely to represent what really happened.
Other Possibilities
Skinners auburn hair – Bounty?
Blights description of mutineers;
Richd Skinner Aged 22 years — 5ft.8In High
Complexion Fair
Hair Light Brown
Make Well made
Marks Scars on both Ankles & on his Right Shin
Very much tatowed (sic) by Trade a Hair Dresser
http://www.nma.gov.au/audio/transcripts/cook/NMA_Dening_20060728.html
Something else was in this museum, the auburn hair of the barber of the Bounty, Richard Skinner. Hair was a most sacred part of any person among the islanders. It was awesome to the Tahitians that someone had so much power over others as to cut their hair. Anyway, his hair was red and therefore tapu, or sacred, in itself. Skinner had come to the Pacific with a set of models of the latest fashion in London wigs. Maybe the Tahitians also put these models in their museum beside the skulls of two murdered Bounty mutineers.
There was an even more precious object in this museum than Cook’s portrait, the mutineers’ skulls, Skinner’s red hair and the flag - William Bligh painted it for us. It was this four yards long feather wrap or maro or male loin cloth. This maro was a symbol of sovereignty, like a crown, and would be wrapped around their chiefs at the most sacred moments in their lives. It was also a sort of historical document. Those yellow feathers are clustered and represent the human sacrifices that were made at the installation of a chief, or at some significant moment in the social and cultural life of the group. The red part is the bunting or ensign with which Captain George Wallis claimed possession of Tahiti in 1767. Somewhere on the maro, too, is Richard Skinner’s red hair - a fact that mortified William Bligh no end to think that one of his mutineers had a place on one of the most sacred objects in all Tahiti.
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=F1DCinfUsFgC&pg=PT18&lpg=PT18&dq=capt+cook+hair+auburn&source=bl&ots=_iIda5c_wJ&sig=mn9QtnrT96XmSr25fc7oKw-
HBYs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiO3ZvYi-DKAhWHNJQKHQDfDj8Q6AEIMzAE#v=onepage&q=capt%20cook%20hair%20auburn&f=false
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=e61YAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA20&lpg=PA20&dq=capt+cook+hair+auburn&source=bl&ots=d4XTGjO9cB&sig=OaNLSJ_WJs6se3SAEU7ga1DHR7Q&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiO3ZvYi-DKAhWHNJQKHQDfDj8Q6AEIPjAI#v=onepage&q=capt%20cook%20hair%20auburn&f=false
http://www.fatefulvoyage.com/minutes/minutesNAnswer.html#novii
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=sPjPV1lSbPsC&pg=PT448&lpg=PT448&dq=bounty+bligh+red+hair&source=bl&ots=JI5T4ONPCC&sig=VqYehrYHP4hynatMUKmVpo0pxOA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiY7Zv7suDKAhUBm
5QKHZZuD90Q6AEIGzAA#v=onepage&q=bounty%20bligh%20red%20hair&f=false
Blights description of mutineers;
Richd Skinner Aged 22 years — 5ft.8In High
Complexion Fair
Hair Light Brown
Make Well made
Marks Scars on both Ankles & on his Right Shin
Very much tatowed (sic) by Trade a Hair Dresser
http://www.nma.gov.au/audio/transcripts/cook/NMA_Dening_20060728.html
Something else was in this museum, the auburn hair of the barber of the Bounty, Richard Skinner. Hair was a most sacred part of any person among the islanders. It was awesome to the Tahitians that someone had so much power over others as to cut their hair. Anyway, his hair was red and therefore tapu, or sacred, in itself. Skinner had come to the Pacific with a set of models of the latest fashion in London wigs. Maybe the Tahitians also put these models in their museum beside the skulls of two murdered Bounty mutineers.
There was an even more precious object in this museum than Cook’s portrait, the mutineers’ skulls, Skinner’s red hair and the flag - William Bligh painted it for us. It was this four yards long feather wrap or maro or male loin cloth. This maro was a symbol of sovereignty, like a crown, and would be wrapped around their chiefs at the most sacred moments in their lives. It was also a sort of historical document. Those yellow feathers are clustered and represent the human sacrifices that were made at the installation of a chief, or at some significant moment in the social and cultural life of the group. The red part is the bunting or ensign with which Captain George Wallis claimed possession of Tahiti in 1767. Somewhere on the maro, too, is Richard Skinner’s red hair - a fact that mortified William Bligh no end to think that one of his mutineers had a place on one of the most sacred objects in all Tahiti.
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=F1DCinfUsFgC&pg=PT18&lpg=PT18&dq=capt+cook+hair+auburn&source=bl&ots=_iIda5c_wJ&sig=mn9QtnrT96XmSr25fc7oKw-
HBYs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiO3ZvYi-DKAhWHNJQKHQDfDj8Q6AEIMzAE#v=onepage&q=capt%20cook%20hair%20auburn&f=false
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=e61YAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA20&lpg=PA20&dq=capt+cook+hair+auburn&source=bl&ots=d4XTGjO9cB&sig=OaNLSJ_WJs6se3SAEU7ga1DHR7Q&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiO3ZvYi-DKAhWHNJQKHQDfDj8Q6AEIPjAI#v=onepage&q=capt%20cook%20hair%20auburn&f=false
http://www.fatefulvoyage.com/minutes/minutesNAnswer.html#novii
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=sPjPV1lSbPsC&pg=PT448&lpg=PT448&dq=bounty+bligh+red+hair&source=bl&ots=JI5T4ONPCC&sig=VqYehrYHP4hynatMUKmVpo0pxOA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiY7Zv7suDKAhUBm
5QKHZZuD90Q6AEIGzAA#v=onepage&q=bounty%20bligh%20red%20hair&f=false
Thanks
Mitchell Library Sydney
Tapa album inspected by Palmer November 2008 during ongoing research into newly discovered Cook waistcoat example.
Heather Mansell
Margot Riley
Richard Neville.
Tapa album inspected by Palmer November 2008 during ongoing research into newly discovered Cook waistcoat example.
Heather Mansell
Margot Riley
Richard Neville.
From: Arthur Palmer [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Wednesday, 5 October 2011 7:41 PM
To: [email protected]; [email protected]
Cc: 'Robin Torrence'
Subject: Capt. James Cook's Hair & scalp?
Margot & Heather Good Morning,
This hair/scalp portion is pined in the back section of the Mitchell COOK Tapa sample book with some other examples of traditional very finely plated black Hawaiian Polynesian human hair .
It would appear to be non Polynesian auburn human hair greying at base attached to a small section of scalp.( Cook’s hair colour?).
After taking these photos, & now revising the possibility of this as another example of Cook’s Resolution remains, do you think it would be a useful exercise to have it identified to verify (a) Human?? To rule out long haired Hawaiian dog or some other possible source? (b) if human then Polynesian or European ? & (c) if European then a DNA test with the State Library of NSW Cook hair sample via Mrs Cook’s locket, the bone fragment held by the AM Sydney or some of Cook family descendants if at all possible? Any danger of this bit of research getting a go ahead?
All the best Cheers Arthur
Arthur Beau Palmer AD Fine Art (QCA)
+61 (07) 3876 0115 Mob: 0418 845 515
Web: http://www.arthurbeaupalmer.com (Artefact Gallery)
Ebay Trader ID: arthur-beau-palmer-artifacts
Blog: www.arthur-palmer.blogspot.com (Tribal Art Discussion Forum - Investment and Pleasure, Buying, Selling, Trading)
Postal Mail & Gallery Address:
9 Cross Street
TOOWONG QUEENSLAND 4066 AUSTRALIA
President Emeritus Royal Queensland Art Society (Hon)2004 - 2006
Lord Mayor's Arts and Cultural Advisory Committee (Hon)
Past President BBC Old Collegians Assoc(Hon)
Uni of Qld Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee (Hon)
Senior Consultant Year of the Outback 2002 (Specialist Aboriginal, Art, Aviation)
Approved to value the following classes for the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Programme:
Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander material culture and contemporary art, Arnhem Land Aboriginal Bark Paintings (19thC to present), Aboriginal Hermannsburg watercolours (1930s to present), Pacific (Melanesian Papua New Guinea, Solomons & Islands, Polynesia & Micronesia), African, Asian, Native American Indian material culture, Australian Early and Modern Fine Art, International Aviation Art, Trench Art WWI & WWII.
Consultant Investment Fine and Tribal Art
Approved Registered Valuer (Commonwealth AVO and Queensland Public Trustee)
Appraisal, Provenance, Research, Insurance, Bequests, Auctions
Aboriginal, Pacific, Asian and African Art/Artifacts
International Aviation and Australian Fine Art.
Sent: Wednesday, 5 October 2011 7:41 PM
To: [email protected]; [email protected]
Cc: 'Robin Torrence'
Subject: Capt. James Cook's Hair & scalp?
Margot & Heather Good Morning,
This hair/scalp portion is pined in the back section of the Mitchell COOK Tapa sample book with some other examples of traditional very finely plated black Hawaiian Polynesian human hair .
It would appear to be non Polynesian auburn human hair greying at base attached to a small section of scalp.( Cook’s hair colour?).
After taking these photos, & now revising the possibility of this as another example of Cook’s Resolution remains, do you think it would be a useful exercise to have it identified to verify (a) Human?? To rule out long haired Hawaiian dog or some other possible source? (b) if human then Polynesian or European ? & (c) if European then a DNA test with the State Library of NSW Cook hair sample via Mrs Cook’s locket, the bone fragment held by the AM Sydney or some of Cook family descendants if at all possible? Any danger of this bit of research getting a go ahead?
All the best Cheers Arthur
Arthur Beau Palmer AD Fine Art (QCA)
+61 (07) 3876 0115 Mob: 0418 845 515
Web: http://www.arthurbeaupalmer.com (Artefact Gallery)
Ebay Trader ID: arthur-beau-palmer-artifacts
Blog: www.arthur-palmer.blogspot.com (Tribal Art Discussion Forum - Investment and Pleasure, Buying, Selling, Trading)
Postal Mail & Gallery Address:
9 Cross Street
TOOWONG QUEENSLAND 4066 AUSTRALIA
President Emeritus Royal Queensland Art Society (Hon)2004 - 2006
Lord Mayor's Arts and Cultural Advisory Committee (Hon)
Past President BBC Old Collegians Assoc(Hon)
Uni of Qld Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee (Hon)
Senior Consultant Year of the Outback 2002 (Specialist Aboriginal, Art, Aviation)
Approved to value the following classes for the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Programme:
Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander material culture and contemporary art, Arnhem Land Aboriginal Bark Paintings (19thC to present), Aboriginal Hermannsburg watercolours (1930s to present), Pacific (Melanesian Papua New Guinea, Solomons & Islands, Polynesia & Micronesia), African, Asian, Native American Indian material culture, Australian Early and Modern Fine Art, International Aviation Art, Trench Art WWI & WWII.
Consultant Investment Fine and Tribal Art
Approved Registered Valuer (Commonwealth AVO and Queensland Public Trustee)
Appraisal, Provenance, Research, Insurance, Bequests, Auctions
Aboriginal, Pacific, Asian and African Art/Artifacts
International Aviation and Australian Fine Art.

Arthur Beau Palmer is a gallery director in Brisbane who deals in Oceanic & Aboriginal first contact artifacts & fine art.
He has published several papers of early Pacific exploration with specific reference to both Cook & Bligh.
Recently he has been involved in public debate over the provenance of Cook relics that have come up for sale at international Auction houses.
He spent many years in the Northern Territory working with Aboriginal peoples and is a passionate aviator.
His blog posts on numerous ethnographic subjects may be viewed here:
Blog: www.arthur-palmer.blogspot.com
He has published several papers of early Pacific exploration with specific reference to both Cook & Bligh.
Recently he has been involved in public debate over the provenance of Cook relics that have come up for sale at international Auction houses.
He spent many years in the Northern Territory working with Aboriginal peoples and is a passionate aviator.
His blog posts on numerous ethnographic subjects may be viewed here:
Blog: www.arthur-palmer.blogspot.com