Europe

Acropolis/Parthenon
Alhambra
Amalfi Drive
British Museum
Canals of Venice
Cappadocia
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Chartres Cathedral
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Delphi
Dubrovnik
Eiffel Tower
Fjords of Norway
Florence Cityscape
Hagia Sophia
Hermitage Museum
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Leaning Tower of Pisa
Louvre Museum
Matterhorn
Mezquita of Cordoba
Mont-St-Michel
Neuschwanstein Castle
Pompeii
Portofino
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Santorini
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Uffizi Gallery
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Asia

Angkor Wat
Baalbek
Bagan Temples/Pagodas
Bali
Banaue Rice Terraces
Borobudur
Forbidden City
Golden Pavilion
Golden Temple
Great Wall of China
Hong Kong Harbour/City
Kashmir Valley
Katmandu Valley
Ladakh
Li River Cruise
Lijiang Shargri-La
Meenakshi
Mt. Everest
Petronas Twin Towers
Potala Palace at Lhasa
Qin Terra Cotta Warriors
Shwedagon Stupa
Taj Mahal
Temple Emerald Buddha
Varanasi/Ganges
Yangtze River Cruise

Africa & Middle East

Abu Simbel
Burj Al Arab
Damascus Old City
Egyptian Museum
Jerusalem Old City
Karnak Temple
Marrakesh
Mecca
Nile River Cruise
Ngorongoro Crater
Petra
Pyramids of Egypt
Sahara Desert
Serengeti Migration
Valley of the Kings
Victoria Falls

North America

Banff National Park
Carlsbad Caverns
Chichen Itza
Grand Canyon
Metropolitan Museum
New York Skyline
Niagara Falls
San Francisco Bay/City
Teotihuacan
Yellowstone
Yosemite

South America

Amazon Rain Forest
Angel Falls
Carnival in Rio
Easter Island
Galapagos Islands
Iguazu Falls
Machu Picchu
Rio Panoramic Views

Other world areas

Antarctica Cruise
Ayers Rock
Bora Bora
Great Barrier Reef

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Easter Island

Candid tips & insights

 

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Why
Easter Island
is special

Easter Island is noted for its stone human statues (called "moai") carved from volcanic rock.

Easter Island

tips &  insights

Moai count

The moai number nearly 1000 and dot the hillsides above the rocky shores.

Largest

The biggest standing moai is 10 meters (33 feet) tall. An unfinished moai in the quarry is over twice that length and would have weighed about 135,000 kilograms (150 tons).

Purpose

The moai's purpose is a mystery. The most popular theories say they depict gods or ancestors.

Remote

Few places are as remote as Easter Island. It is about 3000 kilometers (2000 miles) away from the two nearest population hubs: Tahiti (to the west) and Chile (east). Geographically, it's in the South Pacific.

First inhabitants

Experts are now fairly certain that Rapa Nui (as the locals call Easter Island) was inhabited by seafaring Polynesians around 400 AD. The Easter Island culture slowly evolved and peaked around 1400 AD.

Decline

At the time of its cultural peak, tiny Easter Island became over populated. To meet short term needs, the people committed conservational suicide by denuding the landscape of trees that future generations would need for fuel, boats and buildings. The topsoil soon eroded, the economy collapsed, civil war ensued and moai sculpting abruptly halted.

Other Polynesia

medal winners

Use the clickable "Polynesia Triangle" map below to learn about the other Hillman Wonder medal winners in Polynesia.

M E N U

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