One theory posits that the early Polynesians who settled on the island, also known as Rapa Nui, cut down trees for logs to roll the statues from their quarries to their overlook positions.
What is the theory on Easter Island?
One of the most popular theories is that the Easter Island statues were tied up with rope and then moved by a group of people working together . Another theory claims that they were moved by laying them down on top of a wooden platform, which was then used to push them around.
Why did the Rapa Nui disappear?
In this story, made popular by geographer Jared Diamond’s bestselling book Collapse, the Indigenous people of the island, the Rapanui, so destroyed their environment that, by around 1600, their society fell into a downward spiral of warfare, cannibalism, and population decline .
What was the major cause for the collapse of population on Rapa Nui?
When Stenseth and Lima used their model and theories to analyse the data from Rapa Nui, the conclusion soon became quite clear. “The demographic declines of the Rapa Nui are linked to the long-term effects of climate change on the island’s capacity for the production of food ”, explains Mauricio Lima.
What happened to the Rapa Nui?
The island was victimized by blackbirding from 1862 to 1863 , resulting in the abduction or killing of about 1,500, with 1,408 working as indentured servants in Peru. Only about a dozen eventually returned to Easter Island, but they brought smallpox, which decimated the remaining population of 1,500.
Are there any Rapa Nui left?
The Rapa Nui are the indigenous Polynesian people of Easter Island. ... At the 2017 census there were 7,750 island inhabitants—almost all living in the village of Hanga Roa on the sheltered west coast.
Are the Rapa Nui still alive?
First of all, the Rapa Nui haven’t been wiped off the face of the Earth: the Rapa Nui people still make up over half the Polynesian population today . Their ancestors likely arrived on Easter Island, now part of Chile, roughly a millennium ago.
What is the purpose of moai?
Moai statues were built to honor chieftain or other important people who had passed away . They were placed on rectangular stone platforms called ahu, which are tombs for the people that the statues represented.
What moai means?
What do the Moai represent? It’s thought that the Moai were symbols of religious and political power and leadership . Carvings and sculptures in the Polynesian world often have strong spiritual meanings, and followers often believe a carving had magical or spiritual powers of the person or deity depicted.
What were moai used for?
The moai were probably carved to commemorate important ancestors and were made from around 1000 C.E. until the second half of the seventeenth century. Over a few hundred years the inhabitants of this remote island quarried, carved and erected around 887 moai.
What did the decline of porpoise a dolphin bones in garbage piles indicate?
5. What did the decline of porpoise (e.g. dolphin) bones in garbage piles indicate? This indicated that over time, the islanders were less and less capable of going out to see to hunt for porpoise . This was another indication that they were missing the necessary palm trees needed to make seaworthy canoes.
What mistake did the Rapa Nui make?
One theory posits that the early Polynesians who settled on the island, also known as Rapa Nui, cut down trees for logs to roll the statues from their quarries to their overlook positions . Competition among clans led to ever bigger moai and, ultimately, to the destruction of the forest.
Why did the Easter Islanders stop producing giant moai statues?
Cristián Moreno Pakarati, who also trains tour guides on the island, explained that locals stopped making moai during a time of high deforestation . Without trees, islanders had to build specialized rock gardens, which kept the soil humid.
What became the largest supply of meat on Easter Island?
In place of these meat supplies, the Easter Islanders intensified their production of chickens, which had been only an occasional food item. They also turned to the largest remaining meat source available: humans , whose bones became common in late Easter Island garbage heaps.
What language do they speak in Easter Island?
Islanders smile, sing and dance in polyester costumes to cater to the mostly Spanish-speaking spenders. Ever since Chile annexed Easter Island more than a century ago, the Spanish language has been chipping away at the Polynesian-based language called Rapa Nui .
What does Rapa Nui mean in Polynesian?
Early Settlement
The first human inhabitants of Rapa Nui ( the Polynesian name for Easter Island ; its Spanish name is Isla de Pascua) are believed to have arrived in an organized party of emigrants. Archaeology dates their arrival at between 700-800 A.D., while linguists estimate it was around the year 400.
