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The monolithic statues of Rapa Nui are called Moai in the Rapa Nui language. Approximately 50% of the 887 statues documented to date still remain in the immediate vicinity of Rano Raraku quarry in which they were produced. The largest unfinished statue measures close to 100 feet in length and weighs approximately 100 tons. French missionary Father Roussel who lived on the island in the 1860s, examined the surfaces of the statues found abandoned in transit along the roads and found that all the surfaces were found to be polished and undamaged by friction In the 1950s, explorer Thor Heyerdahl and his team were the first to conduct major excavations on Easter Island, and to their very great surprise, they found that the massive stone Moai heads were attached in most cases to complete bodies that were buried up to 30 feet below the surface. Many of the excavated Rano Raraku statues have a dorsal pattern. This pattern consists of an arched rainbow motif that is confined to the back. The descendants of the Long-ears claimed that the motif represented the rainbow with the sun and moon above it and rain symbolized by the shape beneath. The oral traditions of the islanders state that the island was settled twice, the first time by a race known as the Long-ears who came from the east, and the second time by the Short-ears from the west. The Long-ears appear to have been a power in the land at an early period in the history of the island and were the master builders of the larger stone statues and megalithic platforms. #easterisland #rapanui #ancient
