Hold on to your laptops because this is a long one folks. Today was my official historical tour! My tour was just me and one other Chilean woman, so it was nearly private. Our tour guide was a Rapa Nui descendant and she gave the tour in both Spanish and English so I was able to learn a lot!! Remember the island is a triangle off-centered from the cardinal directions, so everything is a bit funny when telling of its location. Refer to this map to help!
*Also please note that for some reason many of my pictures from this day are lost somewhere. They seemed to be deleted at random SO I have most of them but some random pictures will be added from online sources to help show you what I'm talking about!*
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First, we started our day at the lower east end of the island. The first stop was Ahu Huri a Urenga (On the map above, it would be just east of the airport). This ahu and moai seem lost. They are not on the coast of the island. There is only one moai on the smaller ahu. The surrounding area is highly decorated with smoothed rocks and the ahu sits very high up. At first, this ahu and moai pair baffled scientists. The moai were used as a form of worship, but there is no water reserve near, no trace of any forests, no coastline, and no remnants of ancient homes. How could people worship something that they did not leave near? What in the world was this ahu doing here? As it turns out, this ahu faces exactly east. The shadows the moai cast behind it at sunrise mark the equinoxes and seasonal changes. The moai here was never given a Rapa Nui name but it is known as “The Astronomer.”
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As the days went by, the shadow behind the moai would make a sweeping motion. They would start at one side, and as the days became closer to the equinox, they would sweep to the right or left. Once at they were at the highest peak, that was the day of the equinox. It is believed that the Rapa Nui people did not have a calendar like we have today. Their days, months, and years perfectly aligned with the seasonal changes.
June 21st is the winter solstice. The moai itself has its chin raised in the air, which is not normal for most moai. The statue looks directly at a constellation when it is at its highest peak and also directly at the sun as it is rising on the solstice day. This constellation served as a guide on the ocean and it follows the currents of the pacific ocean. The moai also has four hands and each finger has extremely long nails with curved thumbs. This shows that the moai was a scholar. He did not do the typical labor of the island work. Whoever he represented studied the stars and was extremely important to noting the seasonal changes. Legend says that this moai did not represent a man that actually lived. The four hands means that he was someone sent from the gods to show them the constellation.
Beside the ahu are strange looking rocks. They have bowl-like structures in the tops of all of them. These would hold water and were delicately placed to view the constellations. Looking down into the water reflections was easier than staring up at the sky all night. This site was a very sacred place where intellectuals and scholars studied the stars, weather patterns, and currents of each season. There are a few of these ahu and moais among the island that seem out of place, but dictate major events for the Rapa Nui people.
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| Many of these looking bowls can be found around the island. They are fun to go visit at night to see just how functional they really are! |
Then we headed off to Vinapu. Vinapu is a site of great feats, and shows the first markings that the Rapa Nui people and the Incas met at some point. They did not mix blood, as per bone and teeth evidence found on the island and the descendants today, but they mixed architectural ideas, plants, and animals. At Vinapu, the Ahu Tahira is designed aesthetically like the buildings of the Incas. It has rounded corners, the blocks fit so snuggly, and the blocks avoid being exactly 90 degrees so as to withstand earthquakes. We know that this was not functional as Easter Island does not suffer ANY earthquakes. Part of the ahu has been damaged, and the blocks can be seen as just a facade. The inside of the ahu is merely just filled with rocks at random and not strategically formed placed like the outside walls. The Moai placed on the ahu were not as grande and decorated as some other Moai of the island. This corner of the island is geographically farthest from the quarry where the Moai were carved. That meant that is was much more expensive and difficult to transport the Moai to this tribe. The tribe was also much poorer than other tribes because they lacked the resources to barter and trade with the other clans of the island.
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The six fallen moai here may not be as large and decorated as other moai found on the island, but they had massive topknots, or pukao. These topknots are still scattered around the area. They are so massive that it's hard to understand how they stood upon the moai themselves! Once they were toppled, the surviving pukao were carved into to create vessels that would hold water during the rainy season. They were too big to move once again, so the people found a way to make them efficient. Reduce, reuse, recycle!
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Vinapu is also important historically because a female moai is seen standing directly behind the Ahu. Historians believe she was placed there during the Birdman period. Female moai are actually more common than male moais, but they were kept more private. The female moai represents fertility, longevity, and overall success. The energies in the female moai were very important in the Rapa Nui culture and religious practices. Every Rapa Nui home had at least one female moai in the center of the home. They would worship her in private. She was not kept private just due to her being a woman, she was kept private because she was truly held higher than the male moai. The male moai represented someone that once lived. The female moai were not based off a real person. They were just holding the female energies that kept the island prosperous. It is very interesting to see how a culture that seemed so male-dominated was actually not.
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| The details of this female maoi are very hard to see in this picture due to erosion, the clouds, and pictures in general do not do these artifacts justice. |
The female moai here is said to be pregnant because of the protruding belly-button. She does not have a “baby belly,” but she is grasping her stomach as if she is with child. Also, this particular moai had two heads. Having multiple heads, extra limbs, graphic navel areas, and bent necks and backs were not uncommon in the female moai. The male moai were always created to be the ideal picture of the men they represent. Archaeologists have not exactly concluded why the females offered such extreme deformities at high rates, but many speculate it was a sign that all children were accepted. With such low populations, and a population built upon themselves, there had to have been insestual relations. This would more than likely cause severe deformities and imperfections within the generations. The female moai had the most powerful energy on the island, so the people would then see those deformities as nothing abnormal. It is just a theory, but it holds true to all the accounts we can see.
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| This is an example of a female moai that was present in many of the houses. This female moai is in the museum on the island that I visited, but it is detailed enough! |
In 1880, a Catholic missionary came to the island and destroyed many of the women moai because it was blasphemous. A majority of the in-home female moai were made of carefully sculpted wood. They were burned. The ones carved from rock were destroyed with axes and hammers. The missionary was stopped before he could finish destroying this female moai. The Rapa Nui people do not worship the energies in the maoi today or believe in any ancient religions that were on the island, but she stands as a symbol of power and strength.
Today, Vinapu is the site where NASA designed the runway to land space shuttles. Yes, space shuttles! I had no idea of this, as many people do not. NASA found the island to be in a perfectly isolated area to land giant space shuttles. If anything were to happen during landing, it would not harm the people of the island, nor would it be a danger to surrounding areas due to the isolation of the island. This corner of the island is uninhabited by any peoples. NASA gave permission to the Rapa Nui people to use their runway as their local airport as well. When we landed, I noticed that the runway looked a bit different than most runways. I just figured it was because there was only one single runway. However, it looks different because it is made to withstand the force and weight of space shuttles landing! I got to see some of the NASA buildings there. They are heavily protected and guarded because what happens inside, no one knows! Very cool little modern-day treasure on the island.
After Vinapu, I was able to see a recreated city. Archaeologists, park rangers, and descendants of the Rapa Nui people have been collecting data and looking at cave drawings for years to create a village. They have been able to piece together nearly every detail. The ancient gardens and chicken houses are able to be seen all over the island. For many years, scientists were unsure of what these structures meant. A few years ago, local boys exploring the vast lava tunnel system underground found drawings that were never seen before. These drawings were said to have been drawn by townswomen hiding in the caves during war. They probably missed their way of life above ground and drew their everyday activities. These drawings are hidden from all elements and are perfectly preserved. I do not have pictures of them (too dark), but a local family took me through the caves to look at them! It was an incredible experience.
Small huts were used for the elites of the clans. However, most commoners lived in the above-ground caves found in vast quantities all over the island. These caves are the cooled remnants of lava “waves” that were covering the island at the time of its formation. They were hollowed out even more and turned into homes. These caves were efficient because they were not underground, but they still added ample protection. They were protected from heat, rain, storms, and were still filled with light during the day. To me, the nobles should have lived in these caves because they were so much stronger and bigger than the small boat houses they had created for themselves.
Inside each of these family caves are ancient beach rocks. These ancient beach rocks are kept in the caves to remind people which ones were lived in and which ones were not. These rocks were brought inland from the beach as a sort of work table. The rocks are smoothed from the waves and other rocks. However, they are hard enough that fibers such as banana leaves could be worked into papers and ropes for the men. Here you can see some gashes left in the rock from chisels and knives that were used. I like that I was able to sit on the rocks with my friends just as the indigenous people did, too. The Rapa Nui Indigenous Organization does not rope these areas off to visitors. They have said that sitting in these caves, and seeing exactly how they were left at the time of the island crisis, is the key to learning about the people. Most tourists take a picture of the outside and keep on walking. They’re missing out on everything! The artifacts left over in the caves are so well preserved because they are protected from the wind and rain, that they look like they were all just used yesterday. In caves on the northern side of the island, you can still find chisels and arrowheads under the layers of sediment.
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| Look how weird the smooth beach rock looks among the rest of the lava rocks! |
Next on the tour was Akahanga. This is the biggest village during ancient times. Here we can see an ahu with a moai directly beside it. The moai never made it to its final resting place, sadly, due to the crises on the island. Here there are many pieces of the ancient houses left over after hundreds of years. There is also a cave that was also used as a house.
The remnants of the stone houses sit on the ground because only the bottoms were stone! The small holes along the tops of the rectangles held the ends of large branches. These branches were bowed, and each end was stuck in the holes. The houses looked like an upside down boat or canoe. The branches were then covered with banana leaves and hay to make them sturdy against the high winds. Only important political and religious figures lived in these houses.
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| Here you can see the general layout and remnants of the old homes built for the elites of the island tribes. |
Next, we made it to the rock quarry, on the volcano Rano Raraku. I am excited to see the statues that represented chiefs that never made it to their final homes. At first, they all look pretty similar. However, up close, you can see that each one is significantly different. These moai were the original bitmojis. You can tell exactly what a man looked like while he was alive! Each moai was distinct from the next. They were all so incredible.
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| Here the maoi were dug back into the hillside until they had manpower to transport them to their final resting homes. |
The general shape, face, and length of the moai were all carved before removing them from the mountain side. Once their main shape and features were complete, they would be carved and detached along the back. They would be taken downhill and partially buried standing upright. This was to allow other master craftsmen to finish the shoulders, ears, and flatten the back. The moai would only be dug up for transportation along the moai road to their Ahu.
The craftsmen and stone workers were some of the most elite and richest people of the island. They were not slaves or seen as poor workers. They were professionals and only they could create the great moai that would hold the Mana of the dead chiefs and kings. The chief craftsman had his own home on the mountain to be able to immerse himself in his work while inspecting the work of others. The stones of his home can still be seen on the side of the mountain.
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| Behind me is a maoi that is still attached to the mountainside. The craftsmen had his face carved out, but his sides and back are still untouched. It was so neat to see the progression from start to finish. |
The workers created an elaborate walking path along the mountain. It would allow them to transport the moai, carve the upright ones, and reach all parts of the mountain without being in the way. This is the path that is still used for tourists to walk through! Rano Raraku is the second and last part of the island that visitors can only visit once per ticket. That means I cannot go back to this great place. However, I spent enough time just walking around that I am satisfied with visiting here. It was incredible.
The last stop of today’s tour was to see Ahu Tongariki. Ahu Tongariki is the biggest and most impressive ahu and moai pair on the island. 15 giant moai stand erect on the coastline. Ahu Tongariki is the most popular place on the island to watch the sunrise. The sun rises directly behind the great statues.
All of the moai at Tongariki were toppled during the Birdman period. We are so lucky that they were, actually. In 1960, the biggest earthquake ever recorded (it hit the top of the scale, so we do not actually know how powerful it was truly) happened in Chile. Three giant tsunami waves hit the eastern coast, destroying the ahu here. Each wave was more than 10 meters (32.8 feet) high. However, the moai here were so big and heavy that they stayed perfectly in place! The ahu platform was completely destroyed, but the 15 moai survived. Unfortunately, only one of the fifteen topknots survived the tsunamis.
The destroyed ahu gave archaeologists another clue into Rapa Nui culture. The ahu was not filled with just any rocks. The platform was filled with old moai! These moai were the retired moai of times passed. That is super interesting to me that no one would have known about the retirement of moai unless the tsunamis hit the island.
In 1992, reconstruction of Tongariki began. Japan funded the entire event, and a moai was sent all the way back to Japan to be a “traveling museum” for the japanese people for all their efforts. Japan created a crane specifically for erecting the delicate moai. In 1996, the project was completed! Today the traveling moai stands at one end of the site to show gratitude to the japanese people and to thank the moai for his great escape! Behind him stands Ahu Tongariki, basking in the sun with waves crashing behind them. It is really a sight. This is the most popular location for most posters and documentary covers about Easter Island. I could see why. It is truly an incredible feat of craftsmanship and modern-day engineering, too!
After our tour, a Chilean woman and I went to get empanadas for dinner. Tia Berta made one HECK of an empanada!! I had the tuna and cheese empanada and it took my breath away it was so delicious. It was nice to have dinner with my new friend, too. She had a granddaughter my age. She told me how awesome it was that I was traveling alone and going for my dreams. She is retired and is traveling the world by herself too! She said she will come and visit me in Pennsylvania, and I am going to hold her to that promise!
