Moai

Moai, also spelled moꞌai, are huge stone statues made by the Rapa Nui people on Rapa Nui (Easter Island) in eastern Polynesia between 1250 and 1500. These statues are carved from stone and have very large heads, making up three-eighths of the whole statue. They do not have legs. The Rapa Nui believed these moai were the living faces of their important ancestors.

Most of these statues were made at a place called Rano Raraku, the main quarry. Many were moved to stone platforms called ahu around the island's edge. When Europeans first saw the island in 1722, the statues still faced inland, watching over their clans. By the late 19th century, all the moai had fallen over, perhaps because of new people arriving or fights between groups.

Making and moving more than 900 of these statues was an amazing achievement. The tallest one put up, named Paro, was almost 10 metres tall and weighed 82 tonnes. Another heavy one at Ahu Tongariki weighed 86 tonnes. Some unfinished statues, if they were completed, could have been around 21 metres tall and weighed between 145 and 165 tonnes. People are still finding new moai today.

Description

The moai are big stone statues made by the Rapa Nui people. They are carved from volcanic rock and have very large heads, which make up about three-eighths of the whole statue. Many of these statues were moved to special stone platforms around the island.

These statues often have big noses, chins, and long ears. Most of them do not show legs and are usually squatting with their arms in different positions. Some have special round shapes on their heads called pukao, which were added later to show even more importance. The moai were very important to the people who made them, as they were thought to hold special power and watch over the community.

History

The statues called moai were carved by the first people of the island, mostly between the years 1250 and 1500. They were made to honor important ancestors and leaders. Each statue showed how important the leader was — the bigger the statue, the more important the leader.

Once finished, the statues were moved to stone platforms along the coast and put standing up. Some had red stone hats called pukao placed on their heads. Making and moving these huge statues took a lot of time, work, and resources.

The places where the statues were carved, called quarries, seem to have been left suddenly. Many statues were still waiting to be moved, and some were only partly finished. Some were never meant to be completed.

Craftsmen

We do not know exactly who carved the statues. Stories from the island say they might have been made by special groups of carvers or by members of each family group.

Transportation

Because the island had few trees by the time Europeans arrived, how the statues were moved was a mystery for a long time. Studies now show that the people might have used ropes to pull the statues and make them "walk" by tilting them from side to side.

Birdman cult

The islanders once had one main leader, but later this changed to a group of warriors. A special contest called the birdman contest began, where people would swim to a faraway island to find the first egg of the season. The winner would get an important position for the year.

Moai Kavakava

These are smaller wooden statues that look sad and thin. They were made after the island’s society began to struggle.

1722–1868 toppling of the moai

After the year 1722, most of the statues that were standing were pushed over. Some may have fallen because of earthquakes. Today, about 50 have been put back up where they once stood.

Removal of moai from Easter Island

A few moai have been taken from the island and are now shown in museums around the world, like in Paris and London.

Replicas and casts

Copies of moai can be seen in museums and universities in many places.

Preservation and restoration

From 1955 to 1978, an archaeologist named William Mulloy studied the moai statues on Easter Island. He helped restore several important sites, including Ahu Akivi, Ahu Ko Te Riku, Ahu Vai Uri, and the Tahai Ceremonial Complex.

The moai and Rapa Nui National Park were added to a list of important world sites protected by UNESCO in 1995. Over the years, many groups have mapped the statues. In 2008, a tourist damaged one of the moai and was fined. Sadly, some moai were damaged by a wildfire in 2022.

Unicode character

In 2010, a special symbol for the moai was added to Unicode as an emoji (🗿). This symbol comes from a statue in Tokyo called "moyai," which was inspired by the moai statues from Easter Island. People often use this emoji in funny or sarcastic ways online.