Moai or moʻai (/ ˈmoʊ.aɪ / ⓘ MOH-eye; Spanish: moái; Rapa Nui: moʻai, lit. 'statue') are monolithic human figures carved by the Rapa Nui people on Rapa Nui (Easter Island) in eastern Polynesia between the years 1250 and 1500. [ 1 ][ 2 ] Nearly half are still at Rano Raraku, the main moai quarry, but hundreds were transported from there and set...

In this episode, we take a look at one of archaeology’s most enduring puzzles: the mystery of Easter Island. Find out how this unique community grew up in complete isolation, severed from the...

Jul 26, 2017 · What you may not have known is that those Easter Island heads actually have hidden buried bodies. Archaeologists have uncovered the bodies associated with the heads and found interesting...

Jan 11, 2019 · Researchers have long puzzled over why the huge Easter Island statues were placed where they are. However, a new study says the people of Rapa Nui, as the island is called in the local...

Unfortunately, there is no written record (and the oral history is scant) to help tell the story of this remote land, its people, and the significance of the nearly 900 giant moai that punctuate...

Dec 16, 2019 · Now, an international study offers fresh insights into what the moai could have represented to the islanders who toiled to quarry and carve the giant effigies. Excavation and analysis at the site of two moai in Rano Raraku as part of the study.

Feb 24, 2024 · Nestled on the remote and enigmatic Easter Island, known to its indigenous people as Rapa Nui, stands one of the most awe-inspiring testaments to ancient ingenuity and determination: the Moai statue known as "El Gigante."

Sep 23, 2023 · Situated over 1,100 miles from the nearest inhabited island and more than 2,000 miles from mainland Chile, Easter Island has captured the fascination of explorers, historians, and ancient astronaut theorists alike.

Easter Island invokes images of giant stone figures standing sentinel over a remote piece of land in Polynesia. Known as Moai, these colossal guardians are the legacy of the Rapa Nui people, whose ingenuity in crafting and transporting these statues continues to …

Nov 9, 2009 · Easter Island, located about 2,300 miles off Chile in the South Pacific Ocean, is known for its nearly 900 giant stone statues that date back several centuries.