Do you love a place that is filled with mysteries and rich history? You have to pack your bags and visit Easter Island, located in Chile, to revel in the place’s historical brilliance. The huge statues and their larger heads located on this island might have intrigued you a lot. Here are the top facts about Easter Island that you can read before planning a visit to this Chilean island.
Skip the long read and Watch the video version: Top 10 facts about Easter Island Scientists Finally Discovered the Truth About Easter Island
FACTS ABOUT EASTER ISLAND
1. The reason behind its name
The history of Easter Island dates back to as early as 1722. During this year, an admiral from Amsterdam, Jacob Roggeveen, landed on this is a secluded island in Chile. He named the place in his own language, Paasch-Eyland, which means Easter Island in English.
However, the other name for this island is Rapa Nui. A very small group of people still lives on this island, and they address this place as Rapa Nui. The people of this place were also known as Rapa Nui.
2. Highly secluded place
An interesting fact about Easter Island is that it is one of the most secluded places on the earth. The closest place that you will find to this island is Pitcairn, which is still over 2000km away. The nearest biggest city that you will find here is Chile, but even that is around 3700km away. So, when you are here, you are expected to respect the island’s privacy and history.
The only way you can get to Easter Island is by plane. You have to go to Santiago airport in Chile, and from there, it takes about 5 hours to reach Easter Island. You can also fly to this place from Tahiti, but that would take you 7 hours to reach this place.
3. Mystery behind the statues
Easter Island is known for its many rows of mysterious statues. These statues are made from tuff, which is a solid form of volcanic ash. This is a soft rock, which deepens the mystery further. Who made these statues? How did the people carve such strong statues with soft rocks? Who moved these heavy statues from the mine to the place where they are currently?
Tourists have many questions like these when they see these statues. Most of these statutes were lying underground. The heaviest one of these statutes is around 82 tons, which makes it highly impossible to carry it when there was no technology.
4. Statues are taken seriously here
Though it is a meagerly-inhibited island, the people here take their history and mystery quite seriously. A few years back in 2008, a tourist from Finland tried to scrape off an ear of one of the moai (statues).A woman resident who saw this incident, immediately intimated the police about it.
The police chased the tourist down, and asked him to pay 17,000USD for the offense. He was also jailed for 7 years and the Chilean newspaper ensured that he gave a public apology. After this incident, Easter Island has become very tough on tourists and visitors.
5. To counter leprosy?
Dr. Anneliese Pontius, the assistant clinical professor in the psychiatry department at Harvard, put forward an interesting theory behind the formation of these statues. According to her, many years ago, the island’s inhabitants had contracted leprosy, due to which their physical features became deformed.
Dr. Pontius believes that the inhabitants made over-perfect statues with great features to recover from their own deformities. For example, leprosy could damage one’s nose cartilage. To get over this problem, the inhabitants made statues with excellent noses that were just perfect.
6. One unique statue whose reason for existence is unknown
Almost all statues of Easter Island have long and pronounced features. They are all located in the beautiful locales of RanoRaraku. However, one statue on Easter Island is quite different from the rest of the moais. While most statues stand huge with their large heads & bodies, this different statue, named Tukuturi, is seen in a kneeling position. Its hands are seen on its legs.
Another major difference between Tukuturi and other statutes is the material used to create the statues. Tukuturiis made from the red-colored PunaPua somewhere else, before being carried to the RanoRaraku, where other statues are kept. Why it was created somewhere else, and why was it moved here? Why does it look different? Nobody knows the answers to these questions to date.
7. Statues were destroyed by islanders many years ago
Many years ago, most of the moai you see now were destroyed by angry islanders who were protesting for various reasons. The inhabitants were divided into groups, and each one destroyed their opponent’s statues. According to verified data, by the year 1868, none was the statues were upright on the island because of these protests and fights. Many have been re-erected since then to become the reason for the surprise of the tourists who come here.
8. Features of the statues
Except for the one different statute we told you about in one of the above sections, all the other statues had huge heads, very long noses, rectangular ears, hard chins and very deep slits in the place of eyes. You cannot miss out onthe heavy brows that dominate the huge heads. While the jaw lines are quite evident, the necks are truncated in these statues.
9. Location of the statues
Each place has its own share of history and mystery. North America, for example, has its share of mysterious monsters and beasts. Learn about the top 10 facts about the chupacabra to know about one such monster in detail. Easter Island, too, has its share of mystery about these statues.
Today, there are close to 887 known Moai on this island. Out of these, 886 are located in such a way that they don’t face the oceans. Only 1 statue faces the ocean, and it is located in AhuAkivi, which is considered a sacred destination by the local Rapa Nui inhabitants.
10. Meaning of Incomplete Statues
The island has many incomplete statues. This made many to believe that Easter Island could have been a sunken continent many years ago. However, studies revealed the craftsmen would deliberately leave the statues incomplete when they came across a hard rock inclusion on the tuff. That’s how we can see so many incomplete statues. This is one of the exciting among the top 10 facts about Easter Island.
Conclusion:
Easter Island continues to captivate the world with its mysterious history and unique cultural heritage. From the towering moai statues to the Rapa Nui people’s sophisticated agricultural techniques, there is much to discover about this remote island. These ten mind-blowing facts about Easter Island serve as a glimpse into its rich history and cultural significance, making it a must-visit destination for anyone interested in archaeology and anthropology.
Frequently Asked Questions:
what cruise lines go to Easter island?
Several cruise lines offer itineraries that include stops at Easter Island, including Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, and Oceania Cruises. Some smaller luxury cruise lines may also visit Easter Island as part of their South Pacific or Polynesian itineraries. The availability of these cruises may vary depending on the time of year and other factors.
is Easter island worth visiting?
Yes, Easter Island is worth visiting for its unique culture, history, and stunning natural beauty. Visitors can explore the famous Moai statues, learn about the island’s indigenous Rapa Nui culture, and enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking, surfing, and snorkeling.
what is the key lesson learned from Easter island?
The key lesson learned from Easter Island is the importance of sustainable resource management. The island’s ancient inhabitants overexploited the island’s resources, leading to environmental degradation and social collapse. This serves as a cautionary tale for modern societies and highlights the need for responsible stewardship of our natural resources.
Everything you need for Your Next Trip:
Aviasales: is a trusted service for buying cheap flight tickets. No extra fees or markups!
Hilton Honors – Points: Buy, Gift, Pool, Transfer, and Restore Hilton Honors Points. the world’s leading loyalty program management site, helping you get more flexibility and value from your airline, hotel, retail, and credit-card loyalty programs.
Snaptravel: It provides great travel deals over SMS, Messenger, and WhatsApp.
Tiqets: is the largest online ticketing platform in the world. It offers directly bookable, instantly available, and completely mobile tickets for shows, museums, and attractions all over the world, including in cities like Rome, New York, Dubai, and many more.
Trainline: get the best available prices, times, and train/bus tickets for your next journey. Trainline is Europe’s leading train and coach app.
Radical Storage: The easiest way to store luggage anywhere Find a luggage storage location near you and book in seconds.
Discover Cars: Car Rental – Search, Compare, and Save up to 70%!
BikesBooking: is an online booking service for motorcycles, scooters, quads, and bicycles all over the world.
Airalo – The World’s First ESIM Store: Stay connected, wherever you travel, at affordable rates. This is the world’s first and largest eSIM store with eSIM plans for 190+ countries and regions world-wide.
Hello, and welcome to my blog! My name is Idammah, and I am the founder of this site dedicated to exploring the world's mysteries, uncovering fascinating facts, and delving into science's weird and beautiful aspects. I have always been fascinated by the unknown and the unexplained, and I love nothing more than digging deep to find the answers to some of life's greatest mysteries. Whether it's exploring the depths of the ocean, investigating ancient civilizations, or unraveling the mysteries of the universe, I am always on the hunt for new knowledge and insights. As a self-proclaimed weirdo and science enthusiast, I believe that there is always more to learn and discover, and I am constantly seeking out new and exciting ways to expand my understanding of the world around me. Through FoxPeek blog, I hope to share my love of all things strange and wonderful with like-minded readers and inspire others to embrace their inner curiosity and seek out the world's mysteries for themselves.
