Thought-provoking poster, posted on FaceBook, makes a pertinent comment
I often point out that Tupaia was a "boat person." Driven out of his home island, Raiatea -- about 1760, during an invasion from the neighboring island of Borabora -- the priest-navigator fled to Papara, in the south of Tahiti. Given refuge, he became the advisor of the chief, Amo Tevahitua, and the lover of Amo's wife, Purea, also a prominent chief. By the time HMZ Dolphin arrived, seven years later, Tupaia was the chief priest of the whole island.
On July 13, 1769, Tupaia sailed with Captain James Cook on HMB Endeavour, and on April 28, 1770, he was there when the first party landed on a beach in Australia.
You won't see him in the iconic Fox painting of the event, however.
Poster copied from Dale Caldwell's Facebook page.
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