Moai, also spelled moꞌai, are large stone statues made by the Rapa Nui people of Easter Island in eastern Polynesia between 1250 and 1500. These statues were carved from stone and are known as moai in the Rapa Nui language, meaning "statue." Most of the statues were created in a place called Rano Raraku, which was the main stone quarry. Many of them were moved to other parts of the island and placed on stone platforms called ahu.
Most moai have very large heads, which are about three-eighths the size of their entire bodies. They do not have legs. The statues were believed to represent the faces of honored ancestors. In addition to the large stone statues, the Rapa Nui people also carved smaller wooden statues, including moꞌai kavakava (male), moꞌai paepae or papa (female), and moꞌai taŋata (male).
When Europeans first visited Easter Island in 1722, many moai were still standing and facing inland toward the lands of their clans. However, by the late 1800s, all of the statues had fallen. They may have been knocked over during wars between groups or because of contact with Europeans.
Creating and moving more than 900 moai is considered a major achievement. The tallest statue, called Paro, was nearly 10 meters (33 feet) tall and weighed 82 tonnes (81 long tons; 90 short tons). The heaviest statue, which was shorter and wider, was located at Ahu Tongariki and weighed 86 tonnes (85 long tons; 95 short tons). One unfinished statue, if completed, would have been about 21 meters (69 feet) tall and weighed between 145 and 165 tonnes (143–162 long tons; 160–182 short tons). New moai statues are still being found as of 2023.
Description
The moai are large stone statues with a simple style that is similar to artwork found in other parts of Polynesia. These statues were carved from volcanic tuff, which is hardened ash from volcanoes. To create the statues, carvers first outlined human figures on the rock wall, then carefully chipped away the surrounding stone until only the image remained. The statues have large heads, with the head being three to five times the size of the body, a feature that reflects the Polynesian belief in the importance of the head. The heads have thick eyebrows, long noses with a unique curl at the nostrils, and thin, protruding lips. The ears are long and oval-shaped, and the jawlines are clearly visible against the short neck. The bodies are heavy, and sometimes the collarbones are slightly visible. The arms are carved in a raised relief and are shown in different positions, with hands and long fingers resting on the hips, meeting at the loincloth. The backs are usually not detailed, but sometimes have patterns on the buttocks and lower back. Most statues do not have clearly visible legs, except for one that is kneeling.
Although the moai are full-body statues, they are sometimes called "Easter Island heads" in some books. This is partly because the heads are much larger than the rest of the body and partly because many images of the statues show them on the slopes of Rano Raraku, where they are often buried up to their shoulders. This has led to the mistaken belief that the statues do not have bodies. Some statues at Rano Raraku have been uncovered, revealing their full forms and showing markings that were protected from weathering by their burial.
The average height of the moai is about 4 meters (13 feet), with a base width of around 1.6 meters (5.2 feet). Each statue typically weighs about 12.5 tonnes (13.8 tons). Most of the over 900 known moai were carved from tuff at Rano Raraku, where 394 statues in different stages of completion remain visible. Others were made from basalt, trachyte, or red scoria. After carving, the statues were polished with pumice.
The moai are known for their large, wide noses, prominent chins, rectangular ears, and deep eye slits. Their bodies are usually squatting, with arms in various positions, and they lack legs. Most of the ahu (stone platforms) where the statues stand are located along the coast and face inland toward the community. Some ahu, like Ahu Akivi, are inland and face the sea, possibly to help travelers find the island.
In 1979, archaeologists discovered that the eye sockets of the moai were designed to hold coral eyes with pupils made of black obsidian or red scoria. This was found by collecting and reassembling pieces of white coral from different sites. Previously, some finds in the Easter Island museum were not recognized as eye parts but were later classified as such. It is believed that statues with eye sockets were placed at ceremonial sites, suggesting a special status for certain moai.
Archaeologists think the statues represented ancestors of the ancient Polynesians. Most moai face inland toward villages, as if watching over the people. The exception is the seven statues at Ahu Akivi, which face the sea. A legend says seven men waited for their king to arrive. A 2019 study suggested that ancient people may have believed quarrying the moai could improve soil fertility and food supplies.
Later moai had pukao, or topknots, on their heads, symbolizing the hair of chieftains. According to local tradition, the spiritual power called mana was believed to reside in the hair. The pukao were made from red scoria, a lightweight rock from Puna Pau. Red is considered a sacred color in Polynesia, and the pukao added more importance to the statues.
When first created, the moai were polished smooth with pumice. However, the tuff used for most statues erodes easily, so the best way to see their details is on statues made from basalt or in old photographs and records of protected surfaces.
Less eroded moai often have designs carved on their backs and buttocks. In 1914, the Routledge expedition linked these designs to traditional tattooing, which had been banned by missionaries. Until modern DNA studies showed the connection between the islanders and the moai, this was key evidence that the statues were made by the Rapa Nui people, not by a group from South America.
At least some moai were painted. One statue in the Metropolitan Museum of Art had a reddish color. Another, Hoa Hakananai'a, was painted with maroon and white until 1868, when it was taken from the island. It is now in the British Museum, but some people want it returned to Rapa Nui.
History
The statues were carved by the original Polynesians who lived on the island, mainly between 1250 and 1500. These statues, called moai, were placed on ahu (stone platforms) and represented deceased ancestors. They may also have symbolized powerful living or past chiefs and showed the importance of a family’s status. The size of a moai on an ahu showed the chief’s power: "The larger the statue, the more mana the chief had." Creating the largest statues was a common goal among Easter Island people. Evidence for this comes from the different sizes of the moai found on the island.
Completed statues were moved to ahu, usually near the coast, and sometimes had red stone cylinders called pukao placed on their heads. Making and moving the moai was a difficult and time-consuming process. Carving each statue required effort and resources, and then the statues had to be transported and placed on their final locations.
The quarries in Rano Raraku were abandoned suddenly, with many stone tools scattered around and many completed moai waiting to be moved, along with many unfinished statues still in the quarry. In the 1800s, some people thought the island was part of a sunken continent and that most moai were underwater. This idea has been proven false. Today, it is not clear which groups among the Rapa Nui people carved the statues. Oral traditions suggest that either a special group of skilled carvers or members of each clan were responsible. These traditions also say the Rano Raraku quarry was divided into areas for each clan.
When Europeans first arrived, the island had few trees, which made it unclear how the statues were moved. Studies of pollen and charcoal in sediment from the island’s crater lakes show that forests covered the island when it was first settled, but they were gradually cut down between 800 and 1200 CE. Logging happened again before 1700 CE.
New archaeological research has changed how people understand the moai. Scientists now use physical evidence, experiments, and landscape studies instead of old stories or untested ideas. These methods allow for fair comparisons of different theories. Studies combining environmental science and experimental archaeology have provided useful information about how the ancient people lived.
It is not known exactly how the moai were moved across the island, but many theories exist. Early researchers thought people used ropes, wooden sleds, or rollers on flat paths. Another idea suggests the statues were rolled on logs, requiring 50–150 people to move them. Older theories claimed hundreds of workers were needed, but recent studies show the statues were likely moved by tying ropes to both sides and "walking" them by tilting them from side to side.
Some researchers doubted earlier theories because there was not enough wood on the island to build sleds or rollers. Evidence of deforestation also suggests the islanders may not have had enough timber. Modern scholars now believe the statues were moved by rocking them upright with ropes.
Oral histories say some people used divine power to move the statues. One story tells of a king named Tuu Ku Ihu who moved them with the help of the god Makemake. Another says a woman living alone on a mountain ordered the statues. Scholars now think the main method was "walking" the statues upright, as laying them on a sledge would have required many people. In 1998, Jo Anne Van Tilburg tested moving a nine-tonne moai using a sledge on rollers, with 60 people pulling ropes. The experiment worked on flat ground but used eucalyptus wood instead of native trees.
In 1986, Thor Heyerdahl and others tested moving a five-tonne and nine-tonne moai by rocking them with ropes. The experiment ended early due to damage to the statues, but Heyerdahl estimated this method could move a 20-tonne statue about 100 meters per day. Other scholars questioned this method because of the damage caused.
Experiments show the islanders used creative methods to move the statues, depending on distance, resources, and the number of people involved. They did not rely on magic or brute force but found practical solutions.
In 2003, Charles Love tested moving a 10-tonne statue using sled runners on log rollers. He found that 25 people could move the statue 46 meters in two minutes. He also suggested that upright posts might have helped push the statues up slopes. These experiments show the islanders used different methods to move the heavy statues over various terrain.
Preservation and restoration
From 1955 to 1978, an American archaeologist named William Mulloy studied the creation, movement, and placement of the large statues on Easter Island. His work on Rapa Nui included examining the Akivi-Vaiteka Complex and restoring Ahu Akivi in 1960. He also studied and restored Ahu Ko Te Riku, Ahu Vai Uri, and the Tahai Ceremonial Complex in 1970. In 1972, he studied and restored two ahu at Hanga Kio’e. In 1974, he studied and restored the ceremonial village at Orongo. He also completed many other archaeological surveys across the island.
The Rapa Nui National Park and the moai statues were added to the 1972 UN list for protecting cultural and natural heritage. This made them part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list in 1995.
Over the years, many groups have mapped the statues. These include work by Father Sebastian Englert and Chilean researchers. The EISP (Easter Island Statue Project) studied and recorded many moai on Rapa Nui and artifacts in museums outside the island. The project aims to learn about the statues’ original purpose, where they were used, and their meaning. Results are shared with Rapa Nui families and local agencies that protect the statues. Other studies were done by Britton Shepardson, Terry L. Hunt, and Carl P. Lipo.
In 2008, a tourist from Finland broke off a piece of a moai’s ear. The tourist was fined $17,000 and banned from the island for three years.
In 2020, a truck that was not being driven rolled into a moai, breaking the statue and causing very serious damage.
In 2022, a wildfire burned an area of about 150 to 250 acres, damaging an unknown number of moai in Rano Raraku. The mayor of Rapa Nui, Pedro Edmunds Paoa, said the fire was started on purpose. Some officials believe the damage to some statues is impossible to fix.
Unicode character
In 2010, the moai statue was added as an emoji (🗿) in Unicode version 6.0 with the code point U+1F5FF. The official name of the emoji is "moyai," which refers to a statue near Shibuya Station in Tokyo. This statue was a gift from the people of Nii-jima, an island 163 kilometers (101 miles) from Tokyo but part of the city. The statue was inspired by the moai statues on Easter Island. Its name combines "moai" with the Japanese word "moyai" (催合い), which means "helping each other."
Unicode included emojis that were first used by Japanese mobile companies in the 1990s. Because of this, different companies created their own versions of the moyai emoji, some showing a moai and others showing the moyai statue. Early versions from Google and Microsoft showed the moyai statue, but later versions were changed to look more like moai.
Although the emoji was created to represent the moyai statue, it is now often used online as a meme to show a serious or unemotional expression or to indicate sarcasm.