The Moai Statues of Easter Island
Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui and Isla de Pascua, is one of those far away places we heard about but never thought we would have the opportunity to experience firsthand.
The remote island seems almost fictional, like something out of a childhood bedtime story. At times, it feels as if the island was never meant to be re-discovered by modern man, as if it has a dark history that it doesn’t want to reveal to the world.
We knew very little about Rapa Nui, aside from the iconic images of giant stone heads that oddly pop out of the earth like a man buried in sand on the beach with nothing but his head visible.
It’s a surreal feeling to be in the presence of the ancient Moai statues, alone and deserted on a volcanic island surrounded by wild horses and whispering trade winds. At times we had to pinch ourselves to remind us that it wasn’t a dream, that we were actually walking on the legendary island.
The story is that over 800 years ago, the ancient Polynesians who inhabited the island crafted the giant heads by carving them directly out of the volcano at Rano Raraku (also known as the quarry or the nursery).
Then, without access to modern day equipment, they somehow transported these insanely heavy statues around the island and resurrected them on massive stone platforms called an “Ahu” (see the photo below).
Photos of the Moai Statues on Easter Island
Ahu Tongariki near Rano Raraku, a 15–Moai Ahu excavated and restored in the 1990s
Ahu Tongariki and dramatic volcanic cliffs, photo taken from Rano Raruku
Giant stone heads at Rano Raruku, the main quarry and home to almost 400 moai statues
Happy couple fulfilling a dream, Ahu Tongariki in the backdrop
Ahu Akivi, a popular ahu with seven moai statues located over 9 km from the quarry
Resident of Hanga Roa riding his horse at sunset
Volcanic stone and colourful wild flowers near Ahu Tongariki on the south coast of Easter Island
Just a little to the left…
Moai statues near the town of Hanga Roa, Rapa Nui’s capital city
Anakena Beach and its tall tropical palm trees. Anakena is unusual for Easter Island
because it’s one of only two sandy beaches in an otherwise rocky coastline
Nicole dwarfed by the massive moai statues at Rano Raraku.
At times it felt like we were the only people on the island, adding to the eerie atmosphere
Moai statues with unique pukao hats, carved from a very light red volcanic stone scoria
Giant stone moai proudly erected at Ahu Tongariki, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Chilean military ships patrolling the waters of Rapa Nui at sunset
Rano Raruku, the main quarry where most of the moai statues were carved
Ahu Tongariki, the largest ahu on Easter Island
Peculiar stone maoi statues at Ahu Tongariki on Easter Island, Chile
Nicole taking a moment to soak in the remarkable surroundings
There are many theories about what the statues represent and why they were constructed, but no one can definitively explain their existence.
Regardless, it is easy to see why this UNESCO World Heritage Site was selected as the Eighth Wonder of the World by top travel bloggers.
Have you visited Easter Island?
Share your experience in the comments section below. Our readers thank you!
Beautiful photographs. I wish we would have been able to make it there, but we had to make a choice between there and the Galapagos and Rapa Nui got the short straw. Another time though as this place looks amazing.
Thanks Pete!
It’s such a cool place. Hopefully you’ll get a chance in the very near future 🙂
Man I gotta tell ya, Easter Island is one of the few places we’ve been that I still dream about. It totally lived up to, and surpassed my expectations. I will definitely go back one day.
Great pictures as usual!
Dan
Thanks Dan – couldn’t agree more!
I’ve always wanted to go to Rapa Nui since reading The Happy Isles of Oceania by Paul Theroux a long, long time ago. He had an excellent quote in there…something along the lines of, “I haven’t seen this many stony faces since my trip to Martha’s Vineyard…” 🙂 Wish I could find the book in this mess I call home, I’d get the exact line for you…
In any case, I ramble! Great photos!
Thanks Raymond… hopefully you’ll get a chance to visit, it really does live up to its lofty expectations
Would LOVE to go to Easter Island. Really great pics. Very cool. 🙂
Thanks Nicole, glad you liked the post 🙂
Easter Island is high on my bucket list of places I love to visit. Must be such a magical place to see al these big statues spread on the Island.
It really is unlike any other place on this planet. The island itself is very cool also, with volcanoes on each corner.
Great photos, especially the sunset ones…stunning! I definitely need to try and make the trip over to the island next year.
Thanks Julia – we took over 1,000 photos while we were there! I need to show serious discipline and not overdue it 😉
I love bizarre things like this…how did they get there, and why are they there?!?! I love a little mystery and atmosphere, and it looks like Easter Island has loads of both 🙂
It certainly does!
🙂
What a destination! Dunno if i’ll ever make it there…
It’s a pretty unique place, hopefully you’ll get the chance to visit someday 🙂
Definitely a place I want to go to so bad. Now, I’ve at least had the chance to be an armchair traveler there today! I like the photographs, especially those at sunset.
Thanks for the kind words Kirsten!
great photos! i remember watching tv shows about them when i was a kid. i love the mystery surrounding them.
Thanks! And agreed – The fact that no one really knows the history is what makes them so fascinating
The Moai are fascinating! I remember when Andi posted about these. It’s not only a huge mystery how they got here but realizing how far Easter Island is from anywhere just makes this even more mysterious!
Agreed. There is something very unique and fascinating about this island of mystery.
It’s also strange walking around these archeological sites with nobody around. You can literally drive all around the island and see hundreds of them before passing another human – bizarre!
OMG, I so want to go there!!! This is the kind of stuff that I love to see and explore while traveling. Love the pictures!
Thanks Norbert! Put it on the list 😉
Incredible photos! I’d love to travel back in time and be on Easter Island when all these guys were being built.
That would be pretty interesting!
I love all the statues and very cool that their existence is still a mystery. I like it when things can’t be explained.
There few places on earth that have so many unknowns. I agree, the mystery totally adds to the atmosphere
Wow, you guys got some amazing shots there. For some reason Easter Island has never really appealed to me, especially considering the time and cost of getting there and back. But I tell you what, your pictures have me re-thinking my previous thoughts. You captured it perfectly.
Thanks Adam! Glad the photos have got you rethinking about not visiting – it’s one of our favourite destinations on the planet.
We haven’t been to Easter Island yet, but we’d love to go! Your photos are stunning, you captured the statues really well.
Thanks GTG’s! Glad you like the pics 🙂
Wow, awesome! I’ve also always wanted to go here, but when I was in Chile it was just too expensive for me! Good for you guys, it looks amazing!
Yeah, it wasn’t cheap. We were able to include it with our RTW ticket but we had to sacrifice going to Brazil.
The photos are beautiful, and I imagine being there was even more breathtaking. So many places to visit, so little time!
Indeed – Isn’t it’s funny how the list of places to visit never seems to shrink??
love the photo of you “soaking” it in… great!
Thanks Jade – yes, that’s a good one. Gives a good sense of how isolated and remote the island is.
I especially love thinking of the theories behind places like this – constantly challenging us. I regularly go to monolithic sites (which must be similar to these) on the island of Corsica in the Mediterranean.
It was quite interesting hearing about the variety of perspectives about where the people went and how the moai were transported around the island.
Fantastic pictures and they bring back memories. I have been to Easter Islands a couple of times in my cruise and they are so fascinating. Like you said, it is like a complete different world which is far away from the modern world.
Thanks – glad the post was able to bring back some fond memories! 🙂
This island is fascinating and definitely something I need to see for myself!
Indeed – It’s a place that needs to be experienced firsthand to truly appreciate
Very beautiful photos!!! Actually those are the most comprehensive photos of Rapa Nui that I’ve ever seen. Before this, I really wanted to go to the island. But after your post, I really really really want to go there.
Awesome! Thanks so much for the kind words, really appreciate the support 🙂
So jealous of you guys! I have wanted to go there all my life and hopefully I will soon! 🙂
It must of been so awesome to actually be there, I love all the photos too!
Did you spend a few days on the island or was it just a day trip?
We were there for 5 days. The only regret we have was not staying longer. There is a lot to do besides visiting the moai (scuba diving, hiking, volcanoes, mountain biking, beach, etc)
hopefully you’ll get there one day soon – it totally lives up to the hype 🙂
I have heard so much about this place but never actually seen pictures like this. They are fantastic.
Thanks Natalie – glad you enjoyed the photos! It was fun taking them 😉
Stunning stunning stunning photos. It’s my dream to go to Easter Island. So glad you had the experience. 🙂
Thanks for the kind words Cheryl, hopefully you’ll get a chance to experience Easter Islans at some point!
What a fascinating place to visit. I haven’t had the chance to visit yet, but the Easter Islands are definitely on my list. I love mysterious places like this!
It certainly is a unique destination 😉
Thanks a lot for sharing this nice post!You’ve done really excellent job!
Great photos, Easter Island men seen from various different sides!
Thanks Dina! Glad you like the photos 😉
This is very fascinating, they do look coming from a fairy tale. Strange that history places their origin 800 years ago, I would have thought they were much older..
Great pictures! Easter Island is still my favorite place we’ve been, and at the top of my list of places to to back too. There was just something awesome about that place.
Dan
Thanks – glad you like the pictures!
You’re right, they are beautiful photographs and what a hauntingly beautiful island.
So many places I need to take my boys before they go off to college!
Easter Island certainly lives up to its reputation – hopefully you’ll get there soon Jillian! 🙂
it’s a wonder how they were able to do such things back in the day with so little technology. it’s cool that you can get so close to them and really look at the details. you’ve got some really nice pics here. good way to take advantage of a once in a lifetime event.
It really is awesome that you can walk right up to the statues. The island really is quite remarkable, it was definitely a once in a lifetime experience
i wonder why the government hasn’t taken away the ability to get so close to and touch them. you’d think they’d want preserve them as much as possible. you know how that goes.
Stumbled across this post from facebook and it couldn´t have come at a more perfect time. We are in Santiago at the moment and have been going back and forth as to whether or not we want to try and get out there while we´re in Chile…this may have pushed over the edge into the ´go´zone!
Easter Island is on my list for December 2012, and I’m trying to decide how long to spend there. I’m interested (obviously) in seeing the statues, and wonder how long you’d allocate to that. Also I wonder what else that isn’t as customarily noteworthy but still interesting you’d recommend? Is it a one-day, two-day, etc. place?
LOVE the sunset photos! I had no idea there were so many of the statues. Great to see you living your dreams and enjoying each other in some pretty amazing places.
Great pics … Easter Island is one of my favourite places, despite having food poisoning almost the whole time I was there!
Your pictures brought back memories of short time spent there in 1969 with the US Air Force..Spent considerable time with Dr. Bill Malloy who spent a great deal of time catalouging the statues and researching history. Thanks to the US Air Force who furnished the equipment and Dr. Malloy who bossed the job many of the Moais were placed back on the Ahus (Very few were standing, most of them had been toppled). Thanks for bringing me back in time. Journey to the center of the Earth written by Dr. Malloy a good book to read.
I remember my visit to the island, it was amazing! Great pictures guys!
I was truly amazed by the moai statues when being on Easter Island! Such a fascinating history. You have awesome pictures of them!