US EditionEaster Island quarry reveals how Polynesians made enigmatic stone statues
- On November 26, 2025, a study in PLOS One led by Carl Philipp Lipo used 11,686 drone images to produce the first high-resolution 3D model of Rano Raraku quarry, showing decentralized moai production matching Rapa Nui society.
- Analysis of the quarry showed about 30 centers at Rano Raraku, with multiple families and clan-level groups carving independently, reflecting Rapa Nui's heterarchy of horizontal social relations.
- Experimental replication demonstrated a 4.35-ton concrete replica walked 100 meters in 40 minutes with 18 people and three ropes, while the quarry model recorded 426 moai, 341 trenches, 133 voids, and five bollards.
- Ecological modelling shows Polynesian rats ate 95% of tree seeds, and authors argue this unintended impact combined with human clearing; the study finds that adaptations such as rock mulch agriculture sustained monument production for 500 years amid community-level competition vs. top-down chiefs.
- The quarry dataset now offers a resource for cultural-preservation efforts at the UNESCO site, as Carl Lipo and colleagues portray Rapa Nui as a durable society managing peer-community competition through display.
34 Articles
34 Articles
Hidden clues on Easter Island: the making of the moai in a new light
A Model of an Easter Island Quarry Reveals How Polynesians Crafted Enigmatic Stone Statues, or Moai.
Archaeologists say that a 3D model of a quarry of incomplete stone heads centuries old on Easter Island offers new clues about how these monuments were made and about the Polynesian society that created them. Also known as Rapa Nui, the remote island is famous for the colossal sculptures that look at the Pacific Ocean, but its inhabitants never erected what would have been the largest statue in the community. The giant head, along with hundreds …
A Model of an Easter Island Quarry Reveals How Polynesians Crafted Enigmatic Stone Statues, or Moai.
Archaeologists say a 3D model of a quarry of centuries-old, incomplete stone heads on Easter Island offers new clues about how these monuments were made and about the Polynesian society that created them.
A Model of an Easter Island Quarry Reveals How Polynesians Crafted Enigmatic Stone Statues, or Moai.
Archaeologists say a 3D model of a quarry of centuries-old, incomplete stone heads on Easter Island offers new clues about how these monuments were made and about the Polynesian society that created them.
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