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Overview of Easter Island |
Island Statistics |
Reference sites |
Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui, is a small triangular multi - volcanoed island, roughly 14 miles long by seven miles wide and 69 square miles. It lies 2,400 miles west of the coast of Chile and 2,500 miles east of Tahiti. Its closest human neighbors are 1,400 miles to the west on Pitcairn Island. The 2500 permanent inhabitants have the honor of being the remotest population on the face of the Earth.
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- Easter Island
a.k.a Rapanui a.k.a Te Pito o Te Henua
- Land area : approx. 69 sq. miles
- Location : 27.12 S 109.37 W
- 2,400 miles west of the coast of Chile and 2,500 miles east of Tahiti. Its closest human neighbors are 1,400 miles to the west on Pitcairn Island
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General Timeline |
General Information |
Commercial sites |
- 300 A.D. Rapa Nui / Easter Island settled
- 1000 Overuse of natural resources, deforestation underway
- 1500 Intensive warfare, Moai construction ceasing, Birdman cult develops
- 1600 Natural resources failing, Birdman cult failing and cannibalism starts
- 1722 Easter Sunday, Admiral Jacob Roggeveen (Dutch) arrives
- 1770 Felipe Gonzalez y Haedo claims Easter Island for Spain and renames it San Carlos(Spanish)
- 1774 James Cook visists.(British)
- 1786 La Perouse (French)
- 1805 New England whaler, The Nancy, kidnaps 22 islanders (USA)
- 1859 - 1862 Peruvian slave trades take in excess of 1000 islanders to work on the Peruvian Guano trade
- 1864 (Jan.) Arrival of first missionary from Valparaiso
- 1888 Annexed by Chile
- 1914 Katherine Routeledge visits for a yearlong expedition to the island. Publishes the book 'The Mystery of Easter Island' in 1919
- 1965 Airport constructed, reliance on yearly Chilean Navy visits reduces
- 1966 Chile declares Easter Island a province
- 1986 Runway extended allowing use as an emergency landing strip for the NASA Space Shuttle
- 1995 Named a World Heritage Site (cultural landscape category)
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- Fly to Easter Island from Santiago, Chile or Papeete, Tahiti. Only airline is LanChile.
- Only airport on the island is Mataveri.
- Accomodation can be found before your arrive or at the airport when you arrive.
- The annual Tapati festival is held at the end of January / beginning of February.
- Renting a car for the day costs about $50 US.
- It is possible to rent bicycles.
- You can rent diving equipment.
- Take the highest strengh sun cream you can, the sun can get vicious
- It is possible to camp all around the island, though many books say you cannot. Water is scarce away from town
- Recommended to watch sunset from Orongo village
- Go towards Poike for star gazing. As good as no light polution
- There are many caves and lava tubes to explore. Take a flashlight with you.
- A guided tour is recommended to get you acclimatised to the island. Trek off on your own afterwards.
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Moai around the world |
Images of Easter Island |
Images of Easter Island Statues |
Not all the Moai in the world are to be found on Easter Island. Some were removed from the island destined for museums, others were used as templates to make replicas.
Originals
British Museum, London, England
Louvre Museum, Paris, France
Fonck Museum, Vina del Mar, Chile
La Serena, Chile
Smithsonian, Washington DC, USA
Reproductions
Santiago, Chile
near Caleta Potales, Chile
Sun Messe Nichinan, Japan
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, USA
Wyoming, USA
Hunt, Texas
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All images are copyrighted Seamus Waldron and are not to be re-used without express permission. |