Oof easter island heads. The moai were built by the rapa nui who were native to the island somewhere between the years 1400 1650. A total of 887 monolithic stone statues have been inventoried on the island and in museum collections. The largest of the moai weigh up to 86 tons and can be as much as 30 feet tall although the average size is about half that big according to easter island travel.
Almost 1000 stone carvings of heads are littered throughout easter island in the pacific ocean but researchers have been unsure of their purpose. The easter island heads were first discovered by explorers in the 1700s. 11001680 rectified radio carbon dates.
The large stone statues or moai for which easter island is famous were carved in the period ad. The moai monoliths carved from stone found on the. One mystery of easter islands statues finally solved researchers say emily dixon cnn updated 11th january 2019 cnn when it comes to easter island s towering stone heads theres now one.
Oct 31 2018 ian harvey. The stone heads of easter island have cast an almost magical spell on anyone that has seen them if only in a photograph. However no one was ever able to figure out how anyone built the statues let alone moved them around the land.
The easter island heads are known as moai by the rapa nui people who carved the figures in the tropical south pacific directly west of chile. Easter island is home to 887 monolithic carvings called moai statues. The mystery of the easter island heads may finally be solved.