Kauai History and Easter Island Ahu

The Easter Island statues were not carved by slaves or workers under duress, but by master craftsmen, highly honored for their skills. There are at least 360 ahu on the island, the largest of which are up to 200 feet long and 23 feet high. They are consistently constructed with a raised platform made of fitted stones and rubble, a ramp that is often paved with beach cobbles, and a leveled court in front. Image ahu (ones with statues) had from one to 15 statues standing on each platform. Statues were placed to look over a ceremonial area and village, with their backs to the sea.

The exact number of moai on Rapa Nui is unknown because many lie buried in piles of rubble or beneath the soil at the quarry, but estimates are from 800 to 1,000. Moai are found in nearly all localities around the island, with a greater number in proximity to the main quarry on the south coast. Practically all the statues were carved from this volcanic cone. The crater where they were fashioned is an extraordinary site filled with incomplete statues in all stages of carving. Great hollows in the cliffs mark places from which statues have been removed. More than 230 others were moved to various locations around the island and erected on platforms. Some lie broken and abandoned where they fell during transport, making Easter Island one of the world’s great archaeological sites.