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Marokau
was discovered
by Louis Antoine de Bougainville in 1768.
It
is one of the Central Tuamotu atolls, is situated 18°13'28"
south and 142°10' west, 120 km to the west of Hao. Marokau is
practically triangular in shape, measuring 21 km by
approximately 20 km.
This
atoll possesses a large natural supply of pearl oysters.
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It
was ravaged by the 1903 cyclone, however, and completely
submerged by the waves, resulting in the death of around
100 inhabitants. |
Marokau
was one of the main sites in
the Polynesian lagoons at which pearls were collected
from the 19th. Century up to 1965.
Nowadays,
its 65 inhabitants
(based on the 1996 census) make a living only by collecting
copra.
This
island belongs to the commune of Hikueru, along with its twin,
Maraheve.
From :
Ministère
des Archipels (1998), Les Tuamotu Gambier : recueil de données
essentielles, décembre 1998, Service de l'administration
et du développement des archipels, PAPEETE.
Norman&Ngaire,
Douglas (1994), Pacific Islands
Yearbook, 17° édition, Fiji Times Ltd, 767p. |
Atoll_site_