One of the most widely known images of polynesian people is their fish hook. In fact, it was the central icon of the Disney movie Moana. The fish hook is what allowed the people to feed its population and eventually create an economy on the island. It is not as basic as it seems, though. It has its own history and mysteries!
According to the legend, Ure Avai was a young fisherman who came from a family of fishermen. Ure Avai was not living up to the reputation his family had and was disappointed in his time at sea. He was a shame to his fishing partners and his father.
Every fisherman on the island used hooks carved from stone. Ure Avai was convinced the stone hook technique was the problem for him. He prayed to the fishing god Mea Kahi. Mea Kahi told him to go to the cave where his grandfather was buried. Ure Avai was to take his grandfather’s femur bone and carve a new hook out of it.
Ure Avai did what Mea Kahi told him and carved a new hook. He tested the new hook and returned home with a canoe full of fish!! He had the best fish that year of anyone on the island. His old fishing partners became envious of his success. They tried to find out his secret so they too could have great success. Ure Avai was killed in a battle with the envious men. The men stole his boat and found a hook made out of bone and not stone. From that day on, all the fishermen on the island began to use bone for their hooks as well. They never worried about how much fish they caught because their boats were always filled.
This legend explains why the ancient Rapa Nui people used hooks made from human bones, unlike other Polynesian islands. Other islands use animal bones or rocks instead. The legend is a great story, but historians believe it is because of the lack of vegetation on the island. There were not many animals on the island that had bones strong enough to use as fish hooks. So they resorted to using human bone instead.
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