Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Trump: We are very close to an agreement in the Middle East.
US President Donald Trump: I will most likely go to Egypt.
Russian agency: Russia will conduct a nuclear test if the US does
Al-Nakhalah: We are the rightful owners, and we must fight to retrieve our rights
Al-Nakhalah: The enemy and its allies must know that we can never surrender to their terms and diktats after all the sacrifices made
Al-Nakhalah: The prisoner exchange clause can be completed in the next few days, and thus we will have pulled the [explosion] fuse and removed the enemy's justifications for aggression
Al-Nakhalah: The Resistance has expressed its willingness to negotiate on the basis that there are items that can be dealt with positively, the first of which is the prisoner exchange item
Al-Nakhalah: Trump's plan entails the Palestinian people's declaration of complete surrender to the enemy
PIJ Secretary-General, Ziyad al-Nakhalah, in an address aired on Al Mayadeen: The Resistance is engaging in a fierce negotiating battle under the so-called Trump plan
Russian Federation Council approves joint military cooperation agreement with Cuba

Historic Moai statue to be returned to Easter Island

  • By Al Mayadeen Net
  • Source: Agencies
  • 22 Feb 2022 10:47
2 Min Read

After being kept at a Chile museum since 1870, the sacred statue returned to its home place, over 3,000 kilometers from the coast.

  • x
  • The moai heads at Rano Raraku, the quarry on Easter Island. The sculptures have bodies attached, but they are buried under the dirt and not visible. About 400 moai are here in various stages of carving. (Karen Schwartz/AP)
    The Moai heads at Rano Raraku, the quarry on Easter Island (AP)

After being placed in Santiago since 1870, a colossal Moai statue - one of the most iconic stone monuments from Easter Island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean - made its way back to its homeland on Monday.

This comes after years of campaigning to have it returned to Rapa Nui, the local name of the island. 

Moai statues are monolithic human figures which date back to years between 1250 and 1500 A.D, and are symbols of religious and political leadership and power. To their sculpturers, the statues have magical and spiritual meanings hence why they are sacred to the Rapa Nui community. 

The sculpture, which weighs 715 kg, will be transported to Valparaiso in Chile by truck, to have the monument naval-shipped to the island on a journey that will take five days time.

Related News

China’s green strategy redefines Latin America’s global dev. role

Ancient mummies in Asia may be world’s oldest, study finds

The decision is part of a campaign whose target is to return ancient monuments of religious, cultural or spiritual significance, particularly sacred and funerary objects to Rapa Nui.

“For the first time, a Moai will return to the island from the mainland,” said Consuelo Valdes, Chile’s minister of culture.

  • A Moai Tau del Ivi Tupuna statue sits inside the Natural History Museum in Santiago, Chile, before it is returned to Chile’s Easter Island, the statue has been at the museum since 1870. Photograph: Natural History Museum of Chile/AFP/Getty Images
    The Moai Tau del Ivi Tupuna statue inside the Natural History Museum in Santiago, Chile, before it is returned to Rapa Nui. (Natural History Museum of Chile)

“Without a doubt, this is part of a work that as a ministry we began years ago with the return of various collections and ancestors to their homeland.”

Rapa Nui has over 1,000 stone statues of giant heads which have made it to UNESCO world heritage site status. 

In Santiago, the capital of Chile, the Rapa Nui community honored the decision at the National Museum of Natural History, which still keeps two other smaller sculptures.

The statue, carved many hundred years ago, will be kept in the Padre Sebastián Englert Anthropological Museum on the island.

  • Moai statue
  • Chile
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site

Most Read

Tucker Carlson speaks at a memorial for Charlie Kirk, Sunday, September 21, 2025, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona (AP)

Tucker Carlson: Israeli officers gave orders on Iran inside Pentagon

  • Politics
  • 2 Oct 2025
A Hamas fighter in combat fatigues stands before the ceremony for the handover of Israeli captives to the Red Cross in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, February 22, 2025 (AP)

Hamas responds to Trump plan, backs Gaza withdrawal, exchange

  • Politics
  • 3 Oct 2025
Mossad’s secret role in Aldo Moro’s 1978 murder revealed

Mossad’s secret role in Aldo Moro’s 1978 murder exposed

  • Politics
  • 5 Oct 2025
Al-Quds Brigades strike a command and control center north of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, in an undated screengrab from the al-Quds Brigades military media

Gaza resistance announces major operations against Israeli forces

  • Politics
  • 1 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Retired Israeli General Brik says Israel has reached point of no return.
Politics

Retired Israeli General Brik: 'Israel has reached point of no return'

Depleted by foreign wars, US seeks to re-arm for another confrontation
Politics

Depleted by foreign wars, US seeks to re-arm for another confrontation

Gaza’s newborns gasp for life as hospitals collapse amid Israeli war
Health

Gaza newborns gasp for life, share oxygen masks amid collapsed system

UK arms exports to 'Israel' reach record high despite ban calls
Politics

UK arms exports to 'Israel' reach record high despite ban calls

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS