Cook, From G. Officially sent on a mission to observe the transit of Venus across the Sun, a rare astronomical phenomenon, the navigator was, in fact, sent secretly to find a new continent in the southern hemisphere. As the planet Venus passed between the Earth and the Sun, astronomers could calculate the distance from the Sun to the Earth. As Venus came close to the Sun, a shadow suddenly seemed to join the two bodies, making it impossible to distinguish the exact moment of contact. To understand its importance, we must go back to ancient times, when marae were the key places of the entire religious, political and social life in traditional Polynesian society, a society that existed before the turmoil caused in the early 19th century by European settlements and colonization. For this most difficult assignment Britain needed someone to chart it, map it and claim it for Britain. Cela le distingue clairement de la plupart de ses contemporains de la marine britannique. On February 14, Captain James Cook was killed on the beach of the Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii. Then the gods and the ancient beliefs got rejected and abandoned by the people who turned to a new and unique god, brought to the shores of Tahiti by Catholic and Protestant missionaries. Laurance Rudzinoff position with accuracy; further he described graphically the gigantic Moai statues of Easter Island. For this non-standard creation, the group worked with a great figure of Tahitian culture and especially, its revival in the years - Tavana Salmon Hare. Than he headed south to New Zealand. Their passion, they live it, but they do not live from it. Such an invitation cannot be turned down and, as the show ends and night now falls on marae Arahurahu, spectators are still hanging around, prisoners of the magic of the place and of the show. Next southeast to the Antarctic Circle, crisscrossed and combed the South Pacific to the ice pack, through freezing fog and sleet with the ever-present risk of destruction from icebergs. The moment is a blend of beauty, grace and solemnity. He proved that New Zealand, New Holland and New Guinea were separated by water and therefore were not part of the unknown Southern Continent, Cook returned to England via the Cape of Good Hope. For Cook, the voyage further enhanced his reputation as both an excellent surveyor and discoverer. But on this day, they resonate anew on this Polynesian sacred grounds, while, again, the dancers feet are treading their stones. London, The first voyage of Cook, His orders were, first to observe the Transit of Venus. Great ceremonies, highly standardized and ritualized, were regularly held there. For Banks, the achievement of this voyage was nothing less, the identification and documentation of around 1, plants and more than species previously unknown to European science. Which was not the case of most of his other British Naval Contemporaries. To do this job, of discovering The Great Unknown Southern Continent, Britain needed an outstanding surveyor, exceptional navigator, brilliant Ship Commander, excellent Astronomer, indefatigable explorer and an inspiring leader. Thanks to the Chronometers, for the first time in history, longitude was calculated with accuracy. After and only after observing the Transit of Venus, James Cook could open his secret orders from the British Admiralty, head south and west and secretly search for the Unknown Great Southern Continent, or Terra Australis Incognita. James Cook had been on the other side of the great social divide. He sighted the great chain of towering snow-capped mountains and explored what was later named Prince William Sound and Cook Inlet before finally passing through Bering Strait into the Arctic Ocean. To this day the exact reason is still not known. Princeton University Library. The Resolution sailed from Plymouth 8 July , followed by the Discovery. People believed that there was a counterbalance to the Northern Hemisphere. There, were taken all major decisions. James Cook was the only man whom excelled in all of those fields. He precisely surveyed what is now the north portion of the State of Washington, British Columbia and the Aleutian Islands, to the extreme northwest point of Alaska, which he called Icy Cape. ry La Resolution quitte donc Plymouth le 8 juillet , suivie par la Discovery. Doubled around Cape Horn, sailed along the coast of Chile and turned Westward to Tahiti. From Hawaii Cook approached the west coast of North America, between the mouth of the Columbia River and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Reversing the order of his previous circumnavigation, the Resolution and the Adventure sailed eastward, via the Cape of Good Hope. Il en est ainsi des danseurs et artistes participant au spectacle. Will we be punished for our lack of conscience, or for our ignorance? After the transit of Venus had been observed, Cook made a thorough exploration of this archipelago, which he later named the Society Islands. After two more attempts of the Antarctic region from his New Zealand base, he concluded that a continental mass in the South Polar regions at such high latitude, in such extremes of cold, could have no commercial value. Numerous unfortunate circumstances led to his violent death. these temples, were the interface between the human world and the very complex and structured world of the Polynesian gods. Returning to New Zealand, Cook used this as a base to refresh his crew and to obtain provisions and water before attempting further ventures. A very sweet captivity.{/INSERTKEYS}{/PARAGRAPH} He sailed backwards and forwards along the Asian coast and the American Coast in an effort to penetrate the ice pack, and finally concluding he could do no more because of the approach of autumn and with his ships leaking and in generally bad condition, decided to return to Hawaii to refit for a second try. The melody envelops the male and female dancers moving in the natural and smooth light. The Endeavour left Plymouth Friday, the 26th of August , crossed the Atlantic to Tierra del Fuego, an archipelago at the southernmost tip of Patagonia, divided between Argentina and Chile. Performing a show on such a site is an act of particular intensity. This is the case with the dancers and performers who participate in the show. On June 12, , after nearly three years, James Cook and The Endeavour anchored in Downs, England. He contributed his valuable knowledge of traditional ceremonies and rituals. England, France and Spain wanted to claim as much territory as possible. {PARAGRAPH}{INSERTKEYS}Engraving by J. The Hawaiian Islands were sighted late in November and here is the beginning of the end of Captain James Cook. The group has performed all over the world to make Tahitian dancing known and appreciated and to spread it. They proceeded to Madeira, Cape Verde Islands, to the Cape of Good Hope, then to Tasmania, New Zealand, to Tonga, Tahiti, as well as discovering the Cook Islands en route. A discovery made more striking by the site that was chosen for it, the Arahurahu marae on the island of Tahiti, an ancient place of worship and of ceremonials in the traditional society. The vegetal costumes with their bright greens and colorful flowers stand out on the deep black stones background carved in volcanic rocks, the decor of this unique stage. The question of class was no longer in question. Combining dancing, singing and historical reenactments, this show offers a beautiful journey through the rituals and spirituality of the Polynesian world. An unknown great Southern Continent that held all types of fabulous treasures. These places, i. In James Cook was appointed commander of the H. Oblivion then silence buried the marae, and blurred the memory of rituals that used to be held there regularly. Each was carefully surveyed and the Central and South Pacific were accurately mapped for the first time. He made two immense sweeps of the Pacific, revisiting New Zealand, Tahiti and the other Society Islands, re-discovered the Marquesas and New Hebrides, and discovered several totally unknown islands, among them New Caledonia, South Georgia, the Isle of Pines and Norfolk Island. After a voyage of more than nearly three times the Equatorial circumference of the earth, in three years and eighteen days, The Resolution returned to Plymouth, 26 July The Adventure had separated from the Resolution in intensely inclement weather and had reached England many months earlier. An expression and a passion, in which many Tahitians fully implicate themselves. Sherwin, after a painting by Nathaniel Dance, From the John Wild Autograph Collection. Serons nous punis pour notre inconscience, notre ignorance? He had been an able bodied seaman, he had been a member of the crew, he had been on the deck; which meant that he knew what it was like to be led rather than one of the leaders. Although their desire to share it is obvious. This is one of the many marae that are found around the island of Tahiti. Sailing westward Cook crossed the Tasman Sea to the east coast of Australia then called New Holland and surveyed with precision accuracy the entire east coast. Taking a northerly course Cook discovered Hawaii and named this important Polynesian archipelago in honor of the Earl of Sandwich of the British Admiralty. It surely required the entire experience of this prestigious Tahitian dance group to try such an adventure. In , Englishman James Cook approached, for the first time, the shores of the island of Tahiti. It is certainly not the most important, historically and religiously speaking, but since the s it has been the object of major restorations. Repeated attempts to penetrate farther south did not succeed.