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Why
Easter Island is special
Easter Island in the South Pacific is noted for its stone human
statues (called "moai") carved from volcanic rock. They number
nearly 1000 and dot the hillsides above the rocky shores. The
biggest standing moai is 10 meters (33 feet) tall. An unfinished
moai in the quarry is over twice that length and would have
weighed about 135,000 kilograms (150 tons).
Why the statues were sculpted
The moai's purpose is a mystery. The most popular theories say
they depict gods or ancestors.
Remoteness
Few places are as remote as Easter Island. It is about 3000
kilometers (2000 miles) away from the two nearest population
hubs: Tahiti (to the west) and Chile (east).
Who settled secluded Easter Island?
Experts are now fairly certain that Rapa Nui (as the locals call
Easter Island) was inhabited by seafaring Polynesians around 400
AD. The Easter Island culture slowly evolved and peaked around
1400 AD.
Easter Island's self-inflicted demise
At the time of its cultural peak, tiny Easter Island became over
populated. To meet short term needs, the people committed
conservational suicide by denuding the landscape of trees that
future generations would need for fuel, boats and buildings. The
topsoil soon eroded, the economy collapsed, civil war ensued and
moai sculpting abruptly halted.
What leading travel books say about Easter Island
How the Polynesians arrived at Easter Island is an enigma as
great at the Moai.
South America
Lonely Planet
Easter Island has a wonderful raw, unspoiled beauty.
South America
Insight Guides
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