But the art of Easter Island still looms on the horizon of the human imagination. Just 14 miles long and 7 miles wide, the island is more than 2, miles off the coast of South America and 1, miles from its nearest Polynesian neighbor, Pitcairn Island, where mutineers from the HMS Bounty hid in the 19th century.
Too far south for a tropical climate, lacking coral reefs and perfect beaches, and whipped by perennial winds and seasonal downpours, Easter Island nonetheless possesses a rugged beauty—a mixture of geology and art, of volcanic cones and lava flows, steep cliffs and rocky coves. Its megalithic statues are even more imposing than the landscape, but there is a rich tradition of island arts in forms less solid than stone—in wood and bark cloth, strings and feathers, songs and dances, and in a lost form of pictorial writing called rongorongo, which has eluded every attempt to decipher it.
A society of hereditary chiefs, priests, clans and guilds of specialized craftsmen lived in isolation for 1, years. History, as much as art, made this island unique. But attempts to unravel that history have produced many interpretations and arguments. But by no means everything. When did the first people arrive? Where did they come from? Why did they carve such enormous statues? How did they move them and raise them up onto platforms?
Why, after centuries, did they topple these idols? Such questions have been answered again and again, but the answers keep changing. Estimates of when people first reached the island are as varied, ranging from the first to the sixth century A.
And how they ever found the place, whether by design or accident, is yet another unresolved question. Some argue that the navigators of the first millennium could never have plotted a course over such immense distances without modern precision instruments. One archaeoastronomer suggests that a new supernova in the ancient skies may have pointed the way.
But did the voyagers know the island was even there? For that, science has no answer. Sign Up. Travel Guides. Videos Beyond Hollywood Hungerlust Pioneers of love. Harry Stewart. What are they? When were they built? How big are they? How many are there? Why were they built? Why did they all fall over?
Van Tilburg concludes, "The moai thus mediates between sky and earth, people and chiefs, and chiefs and gods. The word "ahu" has two meanings in Easter Island culture. First, an ahu is the flat mound or stone pedestal upon which the moai stand. The ahus are, on average, about four feet high. The word 'ahu' also signifies a sacred ceremonial site where several moai stand.
Ahu Akivi, for example, is an ahu site with seven standing moai. Very cool. I love your photos. Hi Renuka, Thank you. Too bad the arrival of the Europeans brought about the downfall of their isolated civilisation. I really want to visit this place. Thanks for this awesome, excellent and very helpful post. Beautiful photos and an interesting account. This was one of the most useful reads I have ever come across. All the images of statues and information was wonderful.
I was just surprised how much information you packed into one blog post. Awesome article and amazing way of writing….
Table of Contents. Easter Island Statues. Driving around Rapa Nui. Moai Manufacturing line at Rano Raraku. Moai at Ahu Tongariki. Easter Island Heads Tongariki. Moai Ahu Tongariki. The volcanic coastline of Easter Island. Ahu Nau Nau, Anakena Beach. Moai with Eyes at Ahy Akapu. Rano Kau Crater. Facebook Twitter Pinterest.
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You May Also Like. Good stuff! Amazing post! Excellent knowledgeable articles about Easter islands. Definitely on my chrismas list!!!
Just Wow. Interesting topic and would like to visit and see those statues in the future. Awesome pics of the island. Thanks for Sharing this Post. Really mysterious …… Reply. They are the warning to leave if the volcano ever blew… Reply. How did they carve and structure those rocks? What a place.. Definitely I visit someday.. Very good text, congratulations Reply.
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