Visiting the Moai

 

You can't visit (most of the) Moai sites without a park ticket or a guide, and some of the sites you can only visit once in the 10 days the ticket is valid for.This is to preserve the environment - the guides not only explain the history and culture of the island but they point out where you can and cant go. 

  

Almost all of the sites are on the coast where the Moai have been placed on platforms looking inwards, protecting and  guarding their villages and descendants. The quarry, where the Moai are hewn out of the rock face, is one of the exceptions. The Monuments were commissioned, carved out of the rock, not from a block of stone and then' walked ' out of the quay to their positions around the island. Their top nots were made in a different location from  the red volcanic stone scoria - lighter and distinctive in colour. 

  where the top nots were quarried

They also have grey, black and purple volcanic rock, you can see lava flows all over the island which is made up of more that 40 volcanoes, the most recent blew its top 2,000 years ago , the top parts are in the sea near by and the volcano became the site for the 'birdman' contest. 

 

  

The final touches to the megaliths were added with white coral and black onyx to make the eyes.

 

There are few fences and some precipices where the land has given way so its as much for safety as for cultural sensitivity that  you don't stray from the designated route . The sites that can be visited without a guide have guards and whistles to warn you. You might think here is a handy rock to sit on to enjoy the sunset and not realise it is someone's ancestor. You soon have a guard, often on horseback, galloping towards you blowing a whistle.

view of the quarry with the Maoi marching down the hill

Tribal wars are the reason the Moai  have been toppled. even at the quarry, work stopped to leave and protect the clans monuments and then they were toppled too.  some were returned to their platforms over time but earthquakes and a Tsunami also caused devastation to the island and the Moai. Islanders were captured and sold into slavery, and those that returned brought smallpox and nearly wipes out the islanders.

In 1965 the Japanese lent equipment to lift up the Moai at Tongariki where there are now 15 on a platform, but apparently there were over a hundred along the cliffs there. Apparently the Japanese were given a Moai (accounts differ as to given or stolen) but returned it to the island as it brough such bad luck . It is now close to the Tongariki platform with a dedication to Japan.

This was really impressive

The Moai have a quite reassuring presence, the oldest identified one looks as if he is meditating,  this was before the megalith became more stylised with longer faces, but they all have different features and characters. The longest one - sited at the quay is 22m long and you can also see two unfinished ones - they look as if they are sleeping. 

(This one above is in the center of town, that's the Santander bank behind)

 All around the island are other carved sculptures (petroglyphs) many depicting birdmen and other fantastic creatures with jumbled limbs, fins, tentacles and eyes.

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  There are also wooden sculptures, including naturalistic male figures,  'moai tangata', which  depict family ancestors and 'tukuturi', a kneeling statue with arms and legs.
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