Rapa Nui is known as Isla de Pascua to the Chileans, and Easter Island
to the rest of the world. Islanders also call their home Te Pito O Te Henua,
which means "the
navel of the world."
The best way to appreciate this name is to
hike up to the top of the Rano Kau volcano at the SW
corner of the island.
Along the way,
and at the
summit,
one has many
opportunities to notice how small the island is, and how vast the ocean
looks on all sides.
From this knob of volcanic rock, if one's imagination were to sprout wings and
a jet engine, it would still need 5 hours to reach
Chile to the East, or Tahiti to the West.
These petroglyphs are at the ceremonial village of
Orongo.
Once a year,
the chiefs of various clans on the island gathered here to see who will be
leader for the following year. The contest involves climbing down these
cliffs, swimming out to the islets (Motu Kao Kao, Motu Iti, and Motu Nui,)
retrieving an egg from the Manutara (sooty tern, sterna fuscata,)
and bringing it back unbroken, possibly avoiding sharks along the way.
Easter Island is of course better known for the statues called moai.
When Europeans
first arrived on the scene, most of the moais, and their
foundation platforms
called ahu, were in ruins, apparently toppled in tribal warfare.
Here is a typical ruin at Ahu Tepeu.
Most ahus are an easy stroll from the shore, and most moais
look inland.
Ahu Akivi
is the opposite on both counts.
Ahu Tepeu is
kind of in between; it is on the edge of a cliff overlooking the ocean.
The arrival of non-Polynesians was the beginning of a long decline for
Easter Island. In 1862, Peruvians raided the island for slaves to work
the guano deposits in Peru's Chincha Islands. Most of the kidnapped islanders
died overseas. Among them are the learned who knew the Rongo-Rongo
written language, so the language died along with them.
The population of Easter Island dwindled to a few hundred.
In 1888, Chile formally annexed the island.
Before and after annexation, Easter Island was exploited by foreign sheep
grazing enterprises. During those times most of the island was off limits
to the islanders.
Ahu Vinapu. The
stones
in this ahu
are joined more precisely than
typical. There is a passing resemblance to Inca stonework in Peru.
(Here
is an example of the latter, from Cusco.)
This has led some people to speculate that Easter Islanders were
descended from the ancient Peruvians.
Thor Heyerdahl, the Norwegian anthropologist and
adventurer, was the prime proponent of the Peruvian connection. In
1956 he led an
expedition
to Easter Island. To test their theories on the
construction techniques of antiquity, the Norwegians, with help from islanders,
carved and raised a moai without any modern tools. This is the result of
their work. Note the size and relative crudeness of features...
...compared to the real thing (albeit restored with modern machinery.) This
is Ahu Nau Nau, and it is just a few hundred yards away from the modern replica.
The difference is
dramatic.
Ahu Tongariki. Each moai represents a notable ancestor. There is
a conceptual parallel with the marae of French Polynesia, which
also have stone platforms called ahu, and ensembles of upright stones.
For example, here is a marae in good condition at
Taputapuatea
on the island of Raiatea.
Visitors are requested, in multiple languages, to stay off the platforms.
Apparently some people cannot read.
Ahu Tongariki at sunrise. There are
manywild horses
on Easter Island.
It is quite a challenge to steer clear of their detritus in the pre-dawn
darkness. The horses themselves have much bigger
problems.
Ahu Kote Riku at dusk. If you go here, be sure to say "hola" to our
friend.
Like many of her
compatriots,
she survives on her wits and the kindness of strangers.
Yet in spite of the
hard living,
the ones we came across showed nothing but
charm
and
grace.
Produce in the Hanga Roa market. There is a good chance they
got here
in the back of a battered 4x4 like this
one.
The harbor near Ahu Kai Tangata at late afternoon. Because of the
rocky shoreline, there are
no ports suitable for large ships.
However, Easter Island does have an airport runway that is big
enough for the space shuttle!
Driftwood and tidepools at Ahu Tahai. On Easter Island, one has to
wonder about the origins of any log this size. When the
Routledge expedition
arrived on March 29th, 1914, their cook, Mr Bailey,
despaired out loud, "I don't know how I am to make a fire on
that island, there is no wood!" Many of the bigger trees there now
are fast-growing eucalyptus, which are native to Australia.
The locals definitely self-identify with Polynesian culture. Here
is the "hello" wave that should be familiar to anyone who
has visited Hawaii. On the other hand, this mode of transportation, and
some others,
are decidedly more endemic to Chilean Polynesia.
More information
Easter Island Foundation,
a non-profit to promote the "conservation and protection of the fragile
cultural heritage of Easter Island and other Polynesian islands." Lots of
good information, from scholarly conference proceedings to tourist FAQs.
rongorongo.org, great site
on the rongorongo language, including a dictionary, pictures of all the
characters, and lots of good references.
Museo Antropológico P. Sebastián Englert,
website of the museum on Easter Island, named after a German missionary who
studied the Rapanui language and culture. (Spanish only)
