Article Abstract:
Thor Heyerdahl's expedition to Rapa Nui, or Easter Island, in 1955-56 enhanced the islanders' pride in their culture and also brought many tourists to the island. A negative result was the false belief that the island was settled by people from Peru, rather than Polynesia. Now Rapa Nui is faced with a new threat in the form of a movie being produced by Kevin Costner, a movie which presents a distorted version of Rapa Nui history. The people will probably survive Hollywood's misrepresentation of them, but the cultural value at risk should not be ignored.
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Article Abstract:
The moai megaliths on Easter Island were probably moved horizontally on transport sledges composed of two nonparallel beams riding on rollers. The average statue stood 14.5 feet and weighed 14 tons. It would have taken 2.5 tons of force to move horizontally, thus requiring the combined efforts of adult men from 8-9 extended families. This in turn would require agricultural resources of about 50 acres, double the norm for an extended family, an amount within the reach of most clan chiefs.
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Article Abstract:
This article discusses archeologists' attempt to reconstruct the process and methodology used by ancient Eastern Islanders to construct, transport, and raise the statues called moai. Using green eucalyptus wood to create a rolling track and a sledge, archeologists were able to move the statues across the island ground and eventually raise the statue using rocks, leaves, levers and rope.
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