Alexander Ariʻipaea Salmon

Alexander Ariʻipaea Vehiaitipare Salmon Jr. (1855–1914) was the English-Jewish-Tahitian co-owner of the Maison Brander plantations on Tahiti and de facto ruler of Easter Island from 1878 till its cession to Chile in 1888.

The ranch was managed by the power-hungry convicted murderer Jean-Baptiste Dutrou-Bornier, who had acquired additional land and appointed his Rapanui wife "Queen".

In 1871 Alexander Jr had picked up rudimentary Rapanui from his hundreds of indentured Easter Island labourers at the Mahina coconut plantation on Tahiti.

Bishop Jaussen in Tahiti appointed a Rapanui, Atamu te Kena, "king" to protect church interests from the Maison Brander, but Salmon ignored him and he never had any influence.

He encouraged the manufacture of Rapanui artworks, including imitation rongorongo inscriptions, and helped sell them to passing ships for good prices as cultural artefacts, though he never claimed they were genuine.

Cooke, surgeon of the USS Mohican, which dropped anchor in December 1886, said,[2] Mr Salmon, who is guide, philosopher, and friend to these people, unites in his person (and being a giant in stature, he can well contain them) the duties of referee, arbiter, judge.

His word is law, and his decisions final and undisputed.The information Salmon provided, despite its often poor quality, is still among the most important of Easter Island's early historical period.