What remains is a language, without its original alphabet, carvings and indecipherable petroglyphs, fragments of belief systems and customs, and most famously, the incredible moais that stand guard over the island. The moais, giant stone statues are in themselves a mystery. How did a culture in an age without technology, mine, craft and move these captivating statues?

Over the last few hundred years, the tribe was almost completely wiped out by disease, war and slavery. The landscape was stripped bare, taking the history and culture of the Rapa Nui with it. But that’s why Easter Island offers a life lesson like none other. With the land revived and ever-more clues to the Rapa Nui story being discovered, we can start to piece together an ancient culture. We learnt that the devastation of Easter Island’s ecology coincided with the loss of much of the history, pointing to a deep connection between the people and the environment. Now with the island’s incredible biodiversity bountifully recovered, there has been no better time to experience life like it was on the island all those centuries ago.

We don’t know what clues you’ll find, or what discoveries you’ll make in piecing together the mystery of the Rapa Nui culture but what you find will teach you about a culture that survived extinction by the most razor thin of margins. Now you can help rebuild their history.

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