Monthly Archives: June 2019

MOAI on Easter Island

The Moai of Easter Island

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The moai are a mystery because there are so many different variations to their origins and the reasoning behind their creation, location, and destruction.  Many stories mention dissent among the people, lots of fighting and a very disruptive society.

However, based on a new study, the history has proven to be very different. This study painted a new picture of a new sophisticate and collaborative society based on excavations  four of the statues and the volcanic stone basalt tools used to carve them.  It is now believed that the full body, 13-ton monuments represent important Rapa Nui ancestors.  There are over 900 statues, many buried up to their heads due to the passage of time.  The largest statue is over 70’ tall.  Just admiring the sheer size and number is indicative of a complex, sophisticated society.

Ancient Rapa Nui had chiefs, priests, and guilds of workers who fished, farmed, and made the moai. There was a certain level of sociopolitical organization that was needed to carve almost a thousand statues.

Rapa Nui’s mysterious statues stand in silence but speak volumes about the achievements of their creators. The stone blocks carved into head-and-torso figures, average 13 feet (4 meters) tall and 14 tons. The effort to construct these monuments and move them around the island must have been considerable.  Even though, most scholars now suspect that they were created to honor important personages, it’s impossible to be certain.  Primarily because there is no written and little oral history exists on the island, so it’s impossible to be certain.

How did they build and move these giant monuments?

  1. The MOAI was outlined on the rock, a slow chiseling process.
  2. From the outline, they carved the MOAI out of the rock. The left a “heal” on its back, keeping a connection to the bed-rock.
  3. The keel is removed, and the MOAI is slid down the slope using a multitude of round trees or rocks.
  4. The MOAI is then placed in a pt so that the carving of its back can be finished.
MOAI Carving from Museum

MOAI Carving from Museum

We visited the MAPSE Museo Rapanui museum which was free and fairly easy to find.  They had pieces of MOAI along with ancient artifacts.  We discovered that of the hundreds of MOAI, less than 10 were female.  One of the female MOAI is at the museum (top right photos)

Museum Photos

Museum Photos

With so many MOAI to see it will be hard to get it all in during our short stay, but I promise you we will try!

History of Easter Island – Rapa Nui

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Easter Island is a historical, yet magical and mystical island.  It’s a dream come true to see this stunning island and the majestic moai in person.  In Spanish, Easter Island is called Isla Pasqua and the locals call it Rapa Nui.  This island sits more than 2300 nautical miles NW of Chile and is considered one of the most isolated places on earth.  However, the remote volcanic island is on our route to French Polynesia and will be a very welcome stop for Sugar Shack.

Easter Island’s mystery is centered around the most logic-defying statues on the planet: the moai.  These human depictions with over-sized heads emanate a magnetic, mysterious vibe.  They are mounted on massive stone pedestals called “Ahus.”  Stay tuned for a blog solely on the history of the moai.

How Did Easter Island Get It’s Start?

You might wonder, as I did, how a society blossomed in this unlikely place?  Somewhere around 300-400 A.D., several hardy souls navigated a fleet of wooden outrigger canoes to Isla Pasqua in the vastness of the Pacific Ocean.  Today, the population is roughly 3,300 people on what is now known as a World Heritage site.

Easter Island was formed by a series of volcanic eruptions.  It is an isolated triangle measuring 14 miles long by seven miles wide. In addition to its hilly terrain, the island contains many subterranean caves with corridors that extend deep into mountains of volcanic rock. The island’s largest volcano is known as Rano Kao, and its highest point is Mount Terevaka, which reaches 1,969 feet (600 meters) above sea level. It has a subtropical climate (sunny and dry) and temperate weather.

There is no “natural harbor” here, but ships can anchor off Hanga Roa on the west coast.  This is the only anchorage with “decent” access to shore. You do have to brave through the breakwater which has waves peaking over 2 meters.

Hangoa Roa at Easter Island

Hangoa Roa at Easter Island

On Shore

It is fairly easy to get around, by foot, bus, taxi, bike, or horseback.  The island’s economy depends on tourism and things are not cheap.  You can find decent provisioning between the multitude of small tiendas, but there is no true “market.”  Plenty of touristy stores can be found off the main road.  But other than that, you won’t find much.

Horses, cows and dogs roam freely among the locals and tourist.  The sun shines brightly against the brilliant blue water surrounding the lush, green island.  It is truly a breathtaking sight to behold.

Locals hanging out Easter Island

Locals hanging out Easter Island

The armada even has a pretty sculpted piece in front of the building

Armada on Easter Island

Armada on Easter Island

The only church on the island is just off the main road, in the center of town.

Church on Easter Island

Church on Easter Island

Some Great Articles:

Passage Hao to Tahiti #04

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Closer and closer we go.

Another uneventful day, well there were some fun things. In the morning the wind picked up, we sailed for several hours at decent speeds. Knocking off the miles and hopes of arriving on Sunday during the day light hours danced about the mind. Knowing deep down that there wasn’t much chance of the wind behaving for the next 48 hrs to make that a reality.

Finally a keeper fish came on board. A decent sized tuna, 4 meal or so, took a liking to the bright skirted lure. Bright was the color in the Caribbean but so far the lures that were getting the attention were dark in color. Course the dark ones were favorites of the big guys that take the lures with them.

Christine made banana muffins from bananas she had frozen before we left Gambiers, turned out yummy as usual.

Noticed a bunch of birds circling in front of the boat after I woke up from a nap. Went to the bow to check em out and since the wind was down you could see clearly in the water, the bigger fish chasing smaller fish and then the birds taking advantage and snatching the smaller fish. Went on for hours, they seemed to always be a couple boat lengths away and never behind the boat where the lures were waiting. Wonder if the fish saw us coming and checked out our lures and since we were only going 5 knots, thought that there must be something ‘fishy’ about these lures and just left them untouched.

Lightning was all in the sky early this morning, beautiful but nervous at the same time. Started out just on the port side of the boat, but eventually we could see lightning all around. Most was staying in the sky, but a few were making tracks to the water. Glad they were far far away. Even tho it was ‘red in the morning’ the day was good with only a few drips of rain.

All good, looking forward to finding a place to anchor or a mooring, just looks like it going to be 2 more nights, tonight and tomorrow till we are on the hook in Tahiti.

130 of 498 miles left to go.
[realtime]

At 6/2/2019 @ 6:37 AM UTC
Our position: 17°37.29’S, 147°20.74’W
Traveling 4.8 heading 275T

Google says we are here
www.google.com/maps/place/-17.62150,-147.34567

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