Wonder #10

How were the Easter Island Statues moved?

The island’s local Polynesian name is Rapa Nui. The name “Easter Island” came from Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen, who was the island’s first European visitor on Easter Sunday in 1722.

It’s a special territory of Chile that is famous for its 887 huge statues — called moai — that were created by the early Rapanui people between 1100 and 1680.

This nickname is a bit misleading, though, since most of the statues have bodies.

Huge stone moai statues are sometimes referred to as “Easter Island heads.”

Almost all of the statues were carved out of solidified volcanic ash from an extinct volcano called Rano Raraku.

Although many statues remain in the quarry at Rano Raraku, many others were transported to other areas of Easter Island.

A single moai statue could have taken a team of six men about one year to finish.

Some of the statues weigh over 80 tons!!!

How did the native Rapanui transport these statues up to 11 miles away without wheels or animals?

No one knows for sure

how many of the

statues got to their

current locations

around the island…

What Do You Think?